Episode Details

Here's a stat that stops you in your tracks: 70 percent of the most in-demand skills for 2026 are human skills — leadership, communication, problem-solving. Not coding. Not AI certifications. Human skills. And at the same time, skills tied to actually using AI on the job? They shot up 109 percent year-over-year on Degreed's platform. That's the paradox driving Degreed's biggest product cycle in years. At their LENS 2026 conference in March, they unveiled four major AI innovations — and together they make a pretty compelling case that the traditional LMS is finished. The headline is Degreed Maestro Studio, an AI-powered tutoring engine that lets L&D teams build personalized simulations, coaching role-plays, and practice scenarios without writing a single line of code. Think less 'assign a course' and more 'give every employee a patient AI coach who adapts to exactly where they are.' They also launched Solution Accelerators — pre-built AI fluency and leadership programs that ship ready to deploy. No six-month implementation. No RFP. Just launch. But the move that really signals where enterprise learning is going? MCP integration. Degreed now plugs its skills graph directly into AI tools like ChatGPT and Claude. Your employees can pull learning recommendations and development pathways without ever leaving the tools they're already working in. Skills data flowing into the AI stack — not locked in a learning silo. If you're an L&D or HR leader, the question isn't whether to pay attention to this. It's whether your current platform can do any of it.