Best AI Courses for Beginners: A Complete Guide to AI and Generative AI on Coursera

IBM's Introduction to AI

• Best for: Absolute beginners seeking a general introduction to AI concepts and applications
• Cost: Free (with paid certificate option)
• Skills: AI fundamentals, history, industry applications

DeepLearning.AI's AI for Everyone

• Best for: Non-technical professionals wanting to understand AI's business impact
• Cost: Free (with paid certificate option)
• Skills: AI’s business impact, ethical considerations, industry transformations

Google's Introduction to Generative AI

• Best for: Learners and creators exploring cutting-edge generative AI models
• Cost: Free (with paid certificate option)
• Skills: Generative AI models, creative applications, ethical concerns

DeepLearning.AI's Generative AI for Everyone

• Best for: Professionals interested in business uses of generative AI
• Cost: Free (with paid certificate option)
• Skills: Generative AI for business, non-technical AI understanding, content creation

We definitely don't think you need to stack these to get a full picture for a beginner. But we do recommend picking the one that aligns closest to your interests. Read on below for some deeper dives to determine which one is right for you!

Course description:

This course, sponsored and taught by IBM, offers a comprehensive introduction to the basics of AI, its history, and its applications in various industries. It covers both theoretical knowledge and real-world case studies.

Best for:

Beginners with no prior knowledge of AI who want a broad overview of the field.

Skills you'll learn:

• AI concepts
• History and key developments
• Ethical implications of AI
• Application of AI across sectors

Relevant jobs:

Truly any job would benefit from this, but we thought it'd be most beneficial for business and marketing folks. Some other interesting roles: AI product manager, data analyst, and AI researcher.

Time to complete:

Approximately 13 hours. We'll call that one month!

Brief description:

DeepLearning.AI does the best job at creating beginner-friendly courses designed to demystify AI. It focuses on AI’s impact on industries, ethical challenges, and how AI is transforming the workforce.

Best for:

Anyone looking to gain a broad understanding of AI’s societal and business impact without diving into technical details. Probably more on the non-technical side.

Skills you'll learn:

• Understanding AI’s business and societal impact
• Ethical implications of AI
• How AI is changing industries

Relevant jobs:

AI product manager, business analyst, HR professionals involved in AI initiatives

Time to complete:

Approximately 4-6 hours

Course description:

This Google-led course (one of our favorite institutions on Coursera) dives into the fundamentals of generative AI, including models like GPT-3, and explores how AI can generate text, images, and more. It's part of the wider Google curriculum, Introduction to Generative AI Specialization (screenshot below), which includes LLMs and how to apply the concepts. This course in particular covers the creative potential of AI and the ethical issues that arise with these technologies.

Best for:

Learners interested in exploring the creative side of AI and professionals looking to understand how generative models work.

Skills you'll learn:

• Generative AI models
• Ethical considerations
• Use cases for text, image, and content generation

Relevant jobs:

While you could go with the basics-- aspiring AI researchers, machine learning engineers, or product managers... we thought this was most relevant for content creators looking to expand their portfolios with AI. Anyone working in creative fields would greatly benefit from this specialization-- or more specifically, this course.

Time to complete:

This course? One hour. The whole specialization is about five. We'd recommend knocking the whole thing out in a weekend!

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Course description:

You know how much we love DeepLearning.AI. They offer tons of relevant courses, and often employ the top data science professionals in the industry (Stanford, Google, etc.). Their new course, Generative AI for Everyone, simplifies the concept of generative AI, focusing on its practical applications for business leaders and non-technical audiences. It emphasizes how generative AI can transform industries.

Best for:

Non-technical professionals, business managers, and marketers who want to understand how generative AI can be applied to business and content creation.

Skills you'll learn:

• Non-technical understanding of AI models
• Business use cases for generative AI
• Industry applications

Relevant jobs:

AI product manager, business development manager, marketing professional

Time to complete:

Around 5-6 hours.

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When starting your journey into artificial intelligence, selecting the right course can shape your learning experience. Whether you’re a beginner seeking an overview of AI’s fundamentals or want to dive into the exciting world of generative AI, Coursera’s courses offer something for everyone. By understanding your goals—whether it’s business applications, ethical considerations, or technical knowledge—you can pick the course that aligns with your aspirations and sets you up for success in this rapidly growing field. Start learning today and unlock the future with AI!

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