The artificial intelligence (AI) sector of the training market has seen notable growth in recent years. Providers are continuing to release and refine AI-driven tools and technologies, and more learning professionals are adopting them.
Training Industry market research found that 41% of learning and development (L&D) professionals currently have an AI-enabled authoring tool in their learning technology stack and 55% of L&D professionals are either experimenting/piloting AI-powered tools in their organization or using AI features integrated within existing learning technologies.
Reflecting the rise of AI-driven learning, AI-powered video platform Synthesia recently announced a $200 million Series E funding round at a $4 billion valuation. The funding round was led by existing investor Google Ventures (GV) with participation from Evantic and Hedosophia, among others.
Powering Dynamic Learning Experiences
Through its text-to-video capabilities, which generate videos using AI avatars, Synthesia strives to create interactive learning experiences. Dan-Vlad Cobasneanu, director of brand and product marketing at Synthesia, says the investment will accelerate the company’s shift from static training content to “dynamic systems.” He explains, “We are investing in agents that can update, personalize and contextualize training as knowledge changes.” This creates a “tighter loop” between work and learning.
Rather than training lagging behind, “which is the old way of doing things,” AI agents can pull from different platforms and knowledge sources in real time, allowing learners to “self-serve” information just in time, Cobasneanu says. This allows companies to upskill and reskill employees faster and at scale.
Conversational AI is key in how Synthesia supports interactive and engaging learning experiences. Instead of passively watching a video, Cobasneanu says, users can ask clarifying questions about a topic and explore different scenarios. “This is a whole new level of engaging with information and with content.” This more immersive experience, he says, leads to higher knowledge retention and on-the-job application because it “mirrors the way we learn in the real world.”
Helping L&D teams scale personalized, interactive learning is deeply rooted in Synthesia’s history. Cobasneanu says L&D teams were among the company’s earliest adopters, seeing AI video as a solution to an ongoing challenge: producing video content at scale. “Everybody was tasked to create more video. [L&D leaders] were fully aware that audio-visual content was grabbing attention and was more engaging than text. And they had the problem of, how do they scale video? And that’s where the sweet spot of Synthesia and AI video came in.”
Ultimately, “Synthesia was founded on two core beliefs: First, that AI will bring the cost of content creation down to zero. And secondly, that AI video provides a better, more engaging way for organizations to communicate and learn,” says Victor Riparbelli, Synthesia’s co-founder and CEO. “This funding round is about scaling that vision. We see a rare convergence of two major shifts: a technology shift with AI agents becoming more capable, and a market shift where upskilling and internal knowledge sharing have become board-level priorities. We intend to build the defining company at that intersection, by combining our know-how in AI video with our ability to build and integrate AI technologies into products and services that solve real business needs.”
New Capabilities and Features
As Synthesia continues investing in agentic AI, customers can expect various new capabilities and features. One of the most significant advancements is deeper contextual understanding, Cobasneanu says. Synthesia’s AI agents are being designed to better explain and adapt content based on the learner’s role, experience level, geographic location and learning preferences.
Customers can also expect more self-updating learning assets. With agentic AI, training content can continuously sync with new policies and regulatory changes. This capability is especially critical for highly regulated industries where organizations need to quickly train large, geographically dispersed workforces on updates and new requirements.
Additionally, Synthesia is expanding its enterprise integrations. Future enhancements will focus on deeper connectivity with learning management systems (LMSs) and learning experience platforms (LXPs), giving organizations more flexibility to embed AI-driven video and learning experiences directly into the systems employees already use.
Lastly, Synthesia is reinforcing its commitment to responsible AI through continued investment in guardrails and ongoing process reviews. “Humans are always going to stay in the loop for us,” Cobasneanu says.
Looking Ahead
In addition to the new features and capabilities outlined above, Synthesia is focused on leading the shift away from “one-way, broadcast-style communication” to “two-way interactive conversational experiences,” Cobasneanu says. “That’s where we’re going to use the investment, and that’s our number one focus — to make sure that we, again, can continue to serve our community of learning and development managers with the absolute best products.”
