Accenture, a leading global professional services company that helps the world’s leading businesses, governments and other organizations, has agreed to acquire Udacity, a digital education pioneer with extensive experience in developing and delivering proprietary technology courses that combine the flexibility of online learning with the benefits of human instruction. However, the terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The announcement is part of the company’s strategy to invest $1 billion over three years to improve upskilling opportunities for its clients.
The company also launched LearnVantage, an upskilling platform that aims to provide Accenture’s clients with comprehensive technology learning and training services that will assist them in reskilling and upskilling their employees in technology, data, and AI to reinvent their organizations and increase business value.
Udacity is recognized for its cutting-edge learning approach that emphasizes acquiring practitioner-level technical skills. The acquisition will bring to Accenture Udacity’s capabilities in integrating proprietary content, expert services and scalable learning technology while bridging the gap between online education and workplace relevance. After the acquisition, over 230 employees of Udacity will join Accenture’s team, as per an official statement.
Speaking on the deal, Kishore Durg, Global Lead of Accenture LearnVantage, said:
The rise of generative AI represents one of the most transformative changes in how work gets done and is driving a growing need for enterprises to train and upskill people in cloud, data and AI as they build their digital core and reinvent their enterprises. Adding Udacity to Accenture LearnVantage will enable us to bring Accenture’s deep capabilities as a world-class learning organization to clients at scale, helping them build their people’s skills to achieve more excellent business value.
Since its inception in 2011, Udacity has transitioned from a consumer-focused platform to a talent transformation platform that creates customer value through career development in AI and technology. The platform has served over 21 million registered learners in 195 countries. It provides localized course offerings in multiple languages such as English, Arabic, Korean, and Spanish due to its highly esteemed network of more than 1,400 experts and a vast library of exclusive content co-created with industry leaders. Udacity has set itself apart in a highly competitive sector by combining high-quality content and ‘person in the loop’ learning with an outcome-oriented strategy.
Kai Roemmelt, CEO of Udacity, added:
As we join forces with Accenture, we are thrilled to embark on this next chapter of our journey. Together, we are dedicated to delivering impactful and cutting-edge tech education that enables individuals and organizations to unlock their potential. This, combined with Accenture’s world-class expertise and global footprint, will allow us to reach even more learners and amplify our impact, empowering millions to thrive in the digital economy.
Accenture is a talent and innovation-driven company with almost 743,000 employees serving clients in over 120 countries. The company combines technological power and cloud, data, and AI leadership with unparalleled industry knowledge, functional expertise, and global delivery capabilities. Because of its diverse portfolio of services, solutions, and assets in Strategy & Consulting, Technology, Operations, Industry X, and Song, it is uniquely positioned to offer tangible results.
Accenture said in January that it is establishing generative AI studios in nine countries throughout the Asia Pacific and Latin America to meet the growing demand for the technology.
