{"id":141648,"date":"2026-01-06T08:00:33","date_gmt":"2026-01-06T13:00:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/trainingindustry.com\/?post_type=articles&p=141648"},"modified":"2026-06-01T13:28:44","modified_gmt":"2026-06-01T17:28:44","slug":"how-ld-should-approach-building-ai-literacy-in-2026","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/trainingindustry.com\/articles\/artificial-intelligence\/how-ld-should-approach-building-ai-literacy-in-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"How L&D Should Approach Building AI Literacy in 2026"},"author":7,"featured_media":141649,"template":"","tags":[34077,36460,36606,36599,34455],"class_list":["post-141648","articles","type-articles","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-ai-literacy","tag-ai-literacy-skills","tag-2026-in-demand-skills","tag-trending-articles-january-2026","tag-trending-content","global_topic_tax-artificial-intelligence","global_topic_tax-learning-technologies","global_topic_tax-strategy-alignment-and-planning"],"acf":{"sponsored":false,"gated":false,"gated_content_type":"","file_attachment":null,"gated_content":"","form_instruction_header":"To access the full article, please fill out the form below:","pardot_html_embed":"","author_override":true,"author_name":"Carla Rudder","author_image":133106,"author_bio":"Carla Rudder is a senior editor at Training Industry, Inc., where she enjoys working with authors to shape articles that highlight their unique voice and deliver fresh, practical insights for L&D professionals.","excerpt":"If you are a learning leader being told that you need train the business on how to use artificial intelligence (AI), I have news for you. They are already way ahead of you; they just aren\u2019t talking about it.","main_content":"If you are a learning and development (L&D) leader being told that you need train the business on how to use artificial intelligence<\/a> (AI), I have news for you. They are already way ahead of you; they just aren\u2019t talking about it. AI adoption exploded in 2025, and much of it is happening in the shadows.\r\n\r\nAccording to new research<\/a> from Cornerstone, 80% of workers already use AI, but the majority don\u2019t disclose it to colleagues or managers. Not out of fear or embarrassment, but because they aren\u2019t sure what \u201cgood\u201d AI use looks like, where the guardrails are or what their company expects of them.\r\n\r\nWith the rapid evolution of AI in recent years, many companies find themselves somewhere between encouragement (\u201cGo experiment with AI!\u201d) and enablement (\u201cHere\u2019s how to use it responsibly and effectively\u201d).\r\n\r\nFor learning leaders, this is an opportunity to lead, but getting it right is hard for myriad reasons. AI literacy means something different to every team, every role and every individual in the organization. Old L&D playbooks do not apply.\r\n\r\nI spoke with three leaders sitting at the center of this shift \u2014 one driving internal AI adoption at a tech company, one researching how organizational learning must adapt as AI accelerates, and one leading global analysis on AI behavior in modern workplaces. Their perspectives indicate that the path forward for L&D will require clarity, curiosity and transparency \u2014 not static training.\r\n

Why Employees Aren\u2019t Talking About Their AI Use \u2014 And Why That Matters<\/h2>\r\nCornerstone\u2019s research revealed a surprising paradox: younger workers use AI the most but are the least likely to disclose it. Mike Bollinger, global vice president of strategic initiatives at Cornerstone, said this signals both cultural and clarity gaps.\r\n\r\n\u201cPeople are being encouraged to use AI, but without proper training or clear expectations, they\u2019re reluctant to say how they used it,\u201d said Bollinger.\r\n\r\nThe result is what Bollinger calls \u201cshadow AI.\u201d Employees are using AI quietly, without guardrails, feedback loops or shared learning.\r\n\r\nIf people learn in private, L&D can\u2019t measure behavior change, understand risks or scale what\u2019s working. To fix this, transparency needs to come from the top, said Bollinger.\r\n\r\n\u201cThe best way to create transparency is for leaders to talk about their own AI use. That makes it a safer place for others to share,\u201d he said.\r\n

Why AI Training Requires a Different Approach for L&D<\/h2>\r\nTraditional training is built on defined outcomes, structured curricula and predictable skill progression. AI breaks every part of that model.\r\n\r\n\u201cThis isn\u2019t the cycle we\u2019re used to in L&D. It can\u2019t be. And if we pretend it is, we\u2019re going to have less and less relevance in this space,\u201d said Melissa Brown, learning and development manager for Holland & Hart, LLP.\r\n\r\nShe describes AI training as a paradigm shift similar to the move from in-person training to virtual delivery \u2014 a shift that also broke L&D models until teams rebuilt their practices.\r\n\r\nBut the AI shift is even faster and more unpredictable. Tools evolve weekly. Roles differ widely in how AI applies. And employees are teaching themselves faster than L&D can build modules.\r\n\r\n\u201cWe could build a whole program today and it would be outdated next week. So we can either keep building programs people ignore, or we can become better at facilitating self-directed learning,\u201d said Brown.\r\n

What AI Literacy Should Look Like in Your Workforce<\/h2>\r\nErin Goldman, senior manager of people development at ZipRecruiter, who is rolling out AI enablement across her organization, distinguishes between AI literacy and AI fluency like so:\r\n\r\n\u201cLiteracy is knowing how to use the tool responsibly, when to use it and how to partner with it in daily work. Fluency is innovating with AI and using it for competitive advantage,\u201d said Goldman.\r\n\r\nBut these definitions are highly fluid, Goldman notes. A pilot group experimenting with AI tools and workflows could quickly start to move toward fluency. On the other hand, \u201cthings are changing in this space all the time. Something that you are fluent in today could be a moot point next week,\u201d she said.\r\n\r\nRather than try to pin down a definition of AI literacy, L&D\u2019s goals should focus on:\r\n