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From Marni: where we are, and where we're headed together

UdemyInstructorTeam

Dear Udemy instructors,

In the two months since Udemy and Coursera came together, I've been traveling across Asia, the US, and Europe, talking with instructors, educators, employers, and university and industry leaders about what this moment means for learners and for the people who teach them. From San Diego to Singapore, I keep hearing the same themes: the pace of change is accelerating, employers care more than ever about demonstrated skills, and learners want trusted, practical ways to build what they need for what's next.

Closer to home, I've been following the conversations in the Instructor Community and the feedback you've shared since our combination. What has struck me most is your dedication to your craft; you teach from lived experience, you're committed to helping learners genuinely succeed, and you stay close to what they really need. You bring real-world expertise, and you move fast when a skill evolves or an industry shifts. In the combined company that role doesn't just continue, it becomes even more valuable.

I also know you have questions about discoverability, revenue, and how the platform will evolve, and some of those answers are still being worked out. My commitment is to keep listening, to keep sharing what we know as decisions are made, and to make sure your voice helps shape where we go next.

We're still early, but the direction is clear: AI is making it possible to create experiences that are more engaging, more adaptive, and more connected to real-world application than anything we could have imagined even a few years ago. Our guiding vision is to harness this potential to build a more learner-centered system. For you, that means learners reaching the right content at the right moment — with greater breadth, relevance, application, localization, and personalization than ever before. And, it means giving your content a place to thrive in a stronger, larger, more effective ecosystem for learning.

For now, please keep doing what you do best — changing the lives of learners through the courses only you can create. To help more of them discover your work, check out our new SEO 101 series for instructors. And keep the conversations going in this community. This space is even more critical as we work to ensure every voice is heard. We look forward to sharing more at Front Row later this year.

I also want to take a moment to express my gratitude to Zane Vella for his leadership of this community over the past year; as he passes the torch, I'm committed to building on that foundation. Thank you for the expertise and care you bring to your learners every day. I'm excited for what we'll continue building together.

With appreciation,

Marni Baker-Stein
Chief Content Officer, Coursera

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Comments

FedeGaray

Thank you for sharing this, Marni.

One thought that keeps coming back to me is that AI won’t replace great instructors, it will amplify the ones who have genuine expertise, credibility, and a clear teaching philosophy.

Content is becoming easier to produce, but trust is becoming harder to earn. I hope we continue building an ecosystem that rewards not just volume, but the ability to create meaningful learning experiences.

That’s where I believe instructors can contribute the most.

EveWilliams

This doesn't really answer anything. With plummeting revenue, it isn't realistic for me personally to keep creating. I had a heart attack last year followed by surgery, with alot of time off work. I need my time to turn into money, and that isn't happening on this platform anymore.

abohmeed

Couldn't agree more, FedeGaray. AI just accelerates the ride. It does NOT replace the vehicle or the driver.

For trust, while AI can generate text, it cannot invent real-world stories and experiences coming from years of hard work.

Aadhya

I think Udemy and Coursera are doing great for Instructors and learners. I am certain that Udemy will be the big thing in the world changing the lives of millions of the people in the world. When me and My friends were in 1st year B.Tech, Me and My friends used to learn programming languages from udemy while studying and We could clear all the technical rounds in the interviews in the final of my B.Tech and We could get into IT Industry. If the udemy was not there, We count not clear our technical interviews. Courses in udemy are more affordable for everyone so that everyone can learn from udemy. I hope Udemy will be the same as it was and It will be for everyone.

Eclectictllc

I don't think students want generative AI used in the delivery of content. It's becoming more and more obvious that when it comes to creativity, humans want human-generated and human-made content.

AI may come in handy for transcripts, translations, accessibility issues, search-within-video capabilities (possibly by finding timestamps from srt transcript files), indexing videos with chapters, or similar. As an adjunct to human-to-human accessibility. Not to scrape our videos and answer questions and thus replace human-to-human engagement. Not to create videos. Not even "to make them more engaging".

If AI use becomes obvious and excessive, then the platform will lose everything that people come to the platform for. Human engagement, human wisdom, human learning. It's up to Udemy/Coursera to set a standard and hold instructors to it. I want to make courses. I don't want AI making courses for me, or even "enhancing" my courses in any way people can see/tell.

Col (Dr) Shabbar Shahid (Veteran)

Thank you, Marni, for sharing this update.

I have no doubt that Udemy and Coursera, by coming together, have the potential to begin a new and highly productive chapter in the history of online and distance learning.

My only concern is that artificial intelligence should not be given greater importance than it deserves. Both instructors and learners should be encouraged to use AI as a supportive tool, while avoiding excessive dependence on it.

Udemy and Coursera can make a valuable contribution by promoting AI-assisted courses, where technology enhances the instructor’s expertise, while discouraging entirely AI-generated courses that may lack originality, depth and meaningful human engagement.

We look forward to better days for the combined Udemy–Coursera platform, its instructors, learners and the entire learning ecosystem.

Yes, together we can build a stronger and more meaningful future for online education.

ScottDuffy

Obviously moving away from courses and towards short content. Imo.

AI is the middleman between the students and us.

ahaselberger

Thanks for the update. I honestly really appreciate the "no update-update". So much better than saying nothing and letting us spin out and make up stories in our heads about what's happening (or not happening).

Best,

Alexis

gregwondra

This line said the most (and is not encouraging)…

“I also know you have questions about discoverability, revenue, and how the platform will evolve, and some of those answers are still being worked out.“

LawrenceMMiller

Scott, can you elaborate?

Are you saying that customers are moving away from courses and toward content from YouTube, etc? Or, are you saying that within Udemy we will see short form content?

This phrase, "short form content", has been thrown around for a few years now, but I don't see any actual movement toward this. What are you seeing?

DominandoOfimatica

Gracias por mantenernos al tanto sobre la fusión de ambas plataformas.

Si bien es cierto desde que apareció la IA las cosas se han hecho más fáciles para cada una de las áreas, tanto para instructores cómo para estudiantes, pero comentando esto con los cientos de estudiantes que me ha tocado instruir, en un 90% usan la IA cómo punto de apoyo para profundizar lo que el humano explicaca, pero no es el punto central para el desarrollo o formación que ellos buscan al inscribirse en un curso, eso es lo que mencionan.

Si la nueva fusión opta por la IA para generar contenido se veran dos mundos divididos a mi propia opinión, primero por la nueva generación que esta viniendo que manejará más el tema la IA donde existe un peligro para la plataforma porque al saber el dominio de la IA optará por aprender lo que quiera fuera de la plataforma, y el otro mundo de la generación actual que a la IA lo prefiere como punto de apoyo para estructurar el contenido, más no como la columna vertebral del contenido.

El otro detalle es sobre los nuevos instructores que se irán uniendo, veremos a muchos que no dominan el tema, ya que todo lo haría la IA, y en consecuencia tener cursos de baja calidad y hechos por cualquiera y que no conoce la materia. Pero en fin, la plataforma es de Udemy y Coursera son ellos que tienen el dominio.

CarlosMartinez

Thanks Marni for taking the time to introduce yourself and to join the conversation here. It is genuinely appreciated. Having a visible and approachable point of contact within this forum is especially important. For instructors, knowing that there is a real person listening to the community, understanding our concerns, and helping connect our feedback with the broader organization (Coursera) can make a meaningful difference.

Having built on Udemy for several years, I remain deeply committed to the platform, its learners, and the instructor community. I look forward to contributing constructively to the conversations ahead and to learning more about your perspective on this new chapter.

EvrimKanbur

We really appreciate the message and the update from Marni shared by the Udemy Instructor Team.

That said, I realize this isn’t coming directly from Marni’s account. In the past, Genefa and Zayne were active in the forum with their own accounts, and we could tag them, engage with them directly, and they could participate in the discussions.

It would be great to have Marni, or another senior leader responsible for instructors, participate here directly? Direct, two-way communication is incredibly important for maintaining trust, especially during this period of uncertainty that we’ve been weathering with relatively limited communication. Having leadership engage with instructors firsthand would go a long way toward making the community feel heard, informed, and valued.

Just want to highlight that the future worth building is human.

Coach.Hector

Thanks Marni.

My impression is that the community isn't asking for guarantees.

We're asking for enough predictability and transparency to make informed decisions about investing our time, energy, and creativity.

Most instructors can accept ups and downs.

What's difficult is not knowing whether we're building on solid ground.

ValentinDespa

Thank you for the update, Marni.

I get that there is a lot going on behind the scenes right now and not much concrete news yet.

But things are moving fast in education, and we can’t afford to play catch-up with faster startups. We need to press down on the gas pedal and experiment out in the open. The current model has a lot of cracks in it.

Initiatives like Udemy Content Innovation should be a regular thing. We need a real startup mindset here, less bureaucracy, faster iterations, and quick lessons on what actually works.

As AI reshapes learning, we also can’t lose sight of what actually makes people buy and finish courses: human connection. Learners want to know that the content they’re betting their careers on was created, vetted, and backed by a real expert who has actually done the work, not just generated by an algorithm.

Looking forward to seeing where this goes and getting more updates soon.

Emile-Ackbarali

Hi @LawrenceMMiller, I think that Scott hit the nail on the head. The key paragraph in what Marni has said is this:

"the direction is clear: AI is making it possible to create experiences that are more engaging, more adaptive, and more connected to real-world application than anything we could have imagined even a few years ago. Our guiding vision is to harness this potential to build a more learner-centered system. For you, that means learners reaching the right content at the right moment — with greater breadth, relevance, application, localization, and personalization than ever before. And, it means giving your content a place to thrive in a stronger, larger, more effective ecosystem for learning."

They don't know specifics, but they know what direction is clear. AI is indeed the middle-man. I will use an example from my field, which is manufacturing. This is the scenario:
(a) A subscriber to Udemy wants to know how to perform a network test on a troublesome Siemens network in a softdrink factory.
(b) They type the question into an Udemy's LLM. The LLM can give them a good answer with some good info but text is not enough to show how to use user-unfriendly Siemens software. What you need is one of my videos from my Siemens network course.
(c) The LLM searches and finds the video #39 from my course and shows it to the student. Now they have a complete video showing them exactly how to use the user-unfriendly Siemens software to do the network test. End of interaction.

I get paid for the minutes that are watched on video #39. The learner has reached the "right content at the right time".

Now this is just my best guess on the scenario. I could be wrong. But if I am right, how much do I get paid for my one video watched? From what is happening on UB, maybe not much.

ScottDuffy

My prediction is that udemy will try to understand or assess what the student can do and needs to learn and then will present pieces of content that will help them learn and that could be 20 minutes of video ,10 minutes of video, that could be a quiz, and that could be some other type of content

Emile-Ackbarali

Spot on @ScottDuffy !

GodwinNwaliIgwe

Thank you for the update, Marni.

I believe AI should support instructors, not replace their expertise. Human experience, practical knowledge, and authentic teaching are what make online learning truly valuable and Irreplaceable. AI can't replace creativity

datasiens

We should let companies teach their AI agents new skills with Udemy content and let instructors get paid for it.
I wouldn't mind the spike in revenue if 10,000 agents watch my content and learn new skills 😉

Sherpa

There is far too much obviously AI-generated and AI-narrated content on here now. No reason for a client to pay for what they could generate themselves on an LLM. Where the power lies, IMO and based on looking at the ALPHA schools model, is leveraging avatars for training skills that need reps engaging with people. The role play tool is kind of clunky but it's a step in the right direction. Having a 3D avatar to engage with as a notional clent is super powerful and is what APLHA school are doing successfully right now. Yes, instructors should be required to narrate their own work, although tools to avatar ourselves are available. Use the tools for what they do really well…reps.

ScottDuffy

Yes, exactly. "The right content at the right time." This means getting them a lesson while they are in the middle of trying to solve a real problem, not "sitting down to watch an 8-hour course."

If you want to look on the bright side, maybe they watch 20-30 minutes of videos per day, every day, instead of one whole course, twice per year.

More overall minutes, but not all at once. Maybe.

ScottDuffy

To everyone, I don't think Udemy is thinking about replacing human instructors with AI instructors. That's never been expressed and I don't read that in Marni's update.

She appears to be leaning on "discoverability". And perhaps "getting the student to return every day like Duolingo".

Laretal

What a load of management speak twaddle. I and other instructors I have spoke to have seen our revenues crash with the new model. What are you doing for instructors? I am switching all my courses and new courses to Linkedin Learning and other platforms. Udemy is a waste of time now for instructors.

TanerSaydam

Thank you for the update. However, the most urgent issue for many instructors is revenue. Over the past several months, my earnings on the platform have declined significantly. This is not a minor fluctuation; it directly affects whether continuing to invest time and effort into creating new courses is financially sustainable.

Could you please provide more concrete information about the reasons behind this decline and what the combined company plans to do to ensure a fair and sustainable revenue model for instructors?

RNA

I think it more about Altus product for enterprise and the curated learning experience by fetching only relevant content from multiple courses as needed. Discoverability there is facilitated by MCP servers and the LLM based curation layer sort of partially built in GenAI program. A playlist like approach instead of single course.

So fewer humans creators needed every year as topics start getting their own vertically trained assistants. Gradual displacement.

Edit: Missed the earlier responses in the thread elaborating the same.

SivakamiS2017

Thanks for the update, Marni.
I hope we will be getting more specific updates in the Front Row later this year. Looking forward to it !

PuneetGupta453

I believe because, at this point, there is no real alternative for many of us.

I sincerely hope Udemy shares the realities with instructors before it becomes too late for many individual creators. We are already seeing revenue shrink while the effort required to maintain or grow our courses continues to increase. For many independent instructors, this is more than a business—it's years of learning, creativity, and dedication invested into building something meaningful.

While I appreciate the recent addition of Personal Plan metrics after considerable community feedback, it feels like a small step where much greater transparency is still needed. Engagement minutes, deeper analytics, and actionable reports remain essential for instructors to make informed decisions.

There are many opportunities to strengthen trust in the platform, and I genuinely hope Udemy continues moving in that direction for the benefit of both instructors and learners.

ManasRoy

Thank you Marni, I don't see a reason why AI will not take the market share away from human instructors even now companies like Disney and Netflix are seeing decline in user interest in their content due to AI spread on Tiktok and other social but for those who value relationship over slop this is the best time ever.

It all comes down to how much your students trust and like your way of teaching.

Thank you.

RNA

You bring real-world expertise, and you move fast when a skill evolves or an industry shifts

This is a repeated sentence across multiple interviews and documents. I infer it as UB content, and to be more specific, the framework tutorials and certification related content missing from Coursera catalog. Which in itself is moving towards getting commoditized and automated while being challenged by the branded content from institutional industry partners in the interim.

Majority don't teach that. Many like me create courses around fundamentals that are needed in industry but cannot be easily tested in interviews hence not getting in UB because of sales based curation. This oversimplification is disappointing and probably a signal for things to come.

A sincere request — provide a dignified exit as and when it happens.

HofmeyrdeVo128

I'm in the blessed position that I'm still able to do face to face , in classroom teaching to a wide array of people, from youngsters wanting to know more about coding and robotics, to serious engineers and PhDs that want to hone their skills on specialized IT infrastructure, and I can say, without a shadow of a doubt, that none of these wide array of real people want to be taught by AI. They want to connect with a real person with real-world skills, its really as simple as that. Of course we use AI tools to make our lives easier, will be silly not too, but real teachers will never be replaced IMHO.

The other thing that I'm increasingly been told is that students are suffering from "subscriber fatigue" and would much rather go back to a model where they buy a course, and then own that course for life. This used to be a cornerstone of Udemy, and my students loved that. Now they are bombarded with subs options, and my marketing cannot compete with Udemy advertising a cheaper monthly rate than my one-time , more expensive token price.

As for short courses, absolutely yes! Imagine an instructor channel with full courses and short, single topic lessons. It will be a dream come true for many of us.

I still believe in Udemy, Udemy have always been good to me, and my sincere hope is that we find some middle ground where both instructors and shareholders can be accommodated.

Hofmeyr

Dr. Kat

Dear Marni, thank you so much for showing up and sharing your thoughts here. It is much appreciated to hear from upper management about the direction of the merger.

However, I think the biggest elephant in the room is the drastic drop in revenue many instructors experience. I have lost 90% of revenue in the last two years – and I know many other instructors are facing similar challenges.

This must track back to Udemy's (and/or Coursera's) strategic decisions.

However, we never received an official explanation, and were left alone speculating on the motivation and idea behind reducing instructor revenue this sharply. I know that many of us – myself included – have felt left standing out in the rain – and still do.

Taking us instructors seriously includes not only addressing issues that are pleasant, easy, or obvious to address (the latter applies to AI, imo), and I think we would all appreciate an official statement regarding this issue.

AnsaSmit

All that I know is that my income on Udemy plummeted with 80% the past few months, was halfway creating another course but definitely rethinking the time and money spent to keep going.

PuneetGupta453

Recently, many instructors observed a significant drop in UFB per-minute revenue across multiple courses and categories, yet there was no explanation from Udemy regarding the factors contributing to the decline.

GodfreyParkin

Where AI adds most value to training and education is in being able to provide individualized content and learning paths instead of the old-school 'batch-proceed' sage-on-stage education - in which every learner gets the same content and engages with it in the same limited way. I run selling skills courses, for example, and being able to run roleplays that engage dynamically with each learner seems magical. Udemy's 'broadcast' platform has never allowed this.

PuneetGupta453

1. AI-Powered Interactive Learning
Udemy could leverage AI to transform static role plays into dynamic, animated learning experiences with interactive character movements, making courses more engaging and immersive.

2. Personalized Learning Paths
A single course could support multiple learning paths tailored to different learner goals—for example, a fundamentals track, an advanced track, or an assessment-focused track with quizzes and practice tests. This kind of guided, modular learning experience is still largely missing from both Udemy and Coursera.

Matthieu

In short: "Keep working, keep making content, we believe in you. But just don't ask us how the money is going to be split or when the decline is gonna stop ."

Emile-Ackbarali

Well said. They really need to address this.

LawrenceMMiller

Thanks, and good example.

Coach.Hector

I hope so... but I'm not so sure.

Maybe the agent trained with your course "duolingo style"... goes explaining to the student and bye bye minutes and revshare...

too many assumptions for my head.

DanielEvans

Good to someone not being pulled in by this folly.

All the best in your recovery and future ventures.

JellisVaes

I agree with your thoughts here, Eve Williams. Udemy is not doing a good job at all of motivating instructors to continue creating courses. I went from being able to pay my bills to, in some months, not even being able to afford a coffee. I see little reason to continue creating courses on Udemy.

TanerSaydam

I can't agree more 🤓

BrianJackson

@ScottDuffy,

It's the first step down a slippery slope.

I'm a writer. I taught book writing. I envision a day when people will define the book they want to read using a series of prompts and checkboxes, after which AI will generate it for them. As others fought the arrival of the motor car and factory automation, which replaced valued jobs at the time, AI will replace the majority of artists, fiction and nonfiction writers, teachers…

Does AI write well? Yes, very well. Does it still have quirks and produce errors? Yes. Does it still require human involvement to be any good? Yes, but this is changing fast.

Was graduating from the horse and buggy a good thing or a bad thing? One could argue both ways, as we argue today during the rise of AI.

Elon argues that someday soon people will no longer need to work. Things are changing at an ever-accelerating pace. In fact, they're changing so fast that we're given little time to comprehend what's happening, let alone adapt.

I spend a lot of my computing time working with ChatGPT to do research, analyze options, do financials, outline courses and books and even write books. I own over 300 Udemy courses that I no longer watch. Udemy has nothing to offer me in its current state. It can't compete. Something's got to change.

AI is here and becoming ever more ubiquitous. We all know the end goal.

krchome

The ever plummeting revenues on Udemy have taken a further nose dive it seems as I know now that it is the personal plan where students think they get hundreds of courses for the cost of one. Are there other instructor/s having the same experience here with even top of the demand software engineering courses not earning even a pocket money this year.

May God Save the instructor community who have build it together what it is with all these years of sweat and hard work!

RNA

From Market Insights for "Software Engineering". The curator's "understanding" of topic is clearly seen in the courses that are leading in the segment.

Screenshot 2026-08-07 at 10.30.34 AM.png

It's time to move on, such posts will only attract more discontent and gaslighting. The tides have shifted for a while now.

It was a contract with ultimate goal of profitability. Over the time fewer and fewer remain profitable on platform. Now AI promises more than us, so be it. Only time will tell. Not worth holding breath. If you genuinely enjoy teaching or find sharing knowledge purposeful, the platform shouldn't be a constraint. And if it was always about revenue then platform always had the power to set terms, so no point complaining.

Edit: I teach programming as well.