Empower Your Organisation — Prepare Now for the EU AI Act’s Literacy Requirement

AI isn’t just another tech trend — it’s a transformative capability that’s reshaping work across every industry. From entry-level to executive, everyone in your organisation needs to understand how to use AI confidently, safely, and effectively.

This requires more than awareness, it is a culture change. Upskilling your workforce in AI cannot be achieved in a single workshop or one-off event, but calls for a strategic shift to ongoing real-world learning. And since the beginning of this year, training your employees in ethical and safe use of AI is also the law in the EU.

AI literacy: A critical requirement

The European Union adopted the Artificial Intelligence Act, which imposes strict rules on the development and operation of AI as a vehicle for human-centric innovation. The Act requires organisations to ensure that their employees and contractors who use AI systems are trained to do so responsibly. 

The AI Act literacy obligation came into force in February 2025. This means companies must be in compliance today.

What is the AI literacy requirement? Article 3 of the AI Act defines AI literacy as:

• Skills, knowledge and understanding allowing developers, users, and affected persons to make informed decisions and be aware of the opportunities, risks, and potential harm associated with AI  

What are organisations’ responsibilities regarding AI literacy? Under Article 4 of the AI Act:

• Organisations must assure that their staff, as well as any individuals acting on their behalf, possess an adequate level of AI literacy,
• taking into account their existing knowledge and experience, and
• the specific context in which the AI system will be used, including consideration of the individuals or groups who may be affected.

If your organisation uses tools like CoPilot, Gemini, ChatGPT, or any modern software with AI functionality, this requirement directly affects your operations. Given how deeply AI is now embedded in business technology, this will impact virtually every organisation with a contemporary tech stack.

From compliance to competitive advantage

The baseline approach involves training employees on AI fundamentals, practical applications, and risk management. Standard, one-size-fits-all training, however, does not meet the context-dependent requirement of the Act and will not address the diverse needs across your organisation. Your marketing team interacts with AI differently than your engineering team. Operations teams face unique AI implementation challenges. And your leadership needs strategic insight to navigate this technological evolution.

The AI literacy requirement presents an opportunity to create value beyond mere compliance. By embedding ongoing AI enablement into your core business strategy, you’ll develop teams that don’t just use AI responsibly — they leverage it to transform operations. When employees master AI skills specific to their roles, they achieve productivity breakthroughs that free them to pursue high-value, innovative work that drives business growth and boosts employee retention.

By developing targeted capabilities now, you position your organisation to lead rather than follow. And empower your greatest asset: your people.

If your organisation uses tools like CoPilot, Gemini, ChatGPT, or any modern software with AI functionality, the AI literacy requirement directly affects your operations. Given how deeply AI is now embedded in business technology, this will impact virtually every organisation with a contemporary tech stack.

Your AI leadership roadmap

Proactive leadership is essential in the AI transformation journey. Build your AI upskilling program not simply to meet compliance obligations but to attain a competitive edge in your industry.

This action plan will allow you to move towards AI leadership:

1. Map the skills landscape: Assess current capabilities and develop targeted learning paths across your organisation
2. Find elite partners: Connect with learning providers who offer cutting-edge content and strategic vision
3. Measure and iterate: Evaluate your programs frequently and evolve your approach as technology advances
4. Embed AI learning: Integrate training directly into daily workflows for frictionless adoption
5. Govern wisely: Establish clear internal AI policies that enable innovation while managing risk
6. Document and report: Maintain records that demonstrate not just compliance, but leadership

With c.197 million workers in scope of the AI Literacy requirements across the EU alone and many more in companies marketing AI systems or output in the EU, Udemy is here to support your AI literacy strategy with the learning content and expertise to guide you to success Our AI program is built for all employees, including leaders who want to embed AI fluency into the fabric of their organisation — not just to spark awareness, but to ignite deep capability and culture change.

Download our ebook, A Roadmap for GenAI Success, to learn how to upskill your entire organisation in GenAI technologies.

For practical guidance on integrating GenAI into daily workflows, download A Team Toolkit for Learning Essential Generative AI Skills.

Ready to design and execute your AI learning strategy? Contact Udemy today to learn more.