By Dil Sidhu, Chief Content Officer at Coursera
Alpha Zero, the program that beat the world’s best chess player, is among the most well-known examples of what is called Reinforcement Learning (RL). Considered by many to be the breakthrough for the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI), Reinforcement Learning is truly unique in that it creates autonomous systems that learn from trial-and-error interaction without human intervention. The foundational principles of Reinforcement Learning transfer to cutting-edge technology skills and apply to a wide range of use cases across industries.
As AI is integrated into new sectors like customer service, energy, finance, and more, the demand for experienced AI engineers will continue to grow. In the last year alone, there was a 344 percent increase in the number of jobs requiring AI experience and knowledge.
Today, the University of Alberta is launching a Reinforcement Learning Specialization on Coursera, providing learners with skills required for a transforming AI landscape. This new course series will teach learners the foundations of modern statistical AI, the core of Reinforcement Learning. Upon completion, learners will be equipped with the knowledge needed for more advanced AI education and the necessary tools to apply Reinforcement Learning in areas such as online content suggestion, home automation, industrial process control, and clinical decision making.
The four-course Specialization is intended for learners with at least one year of computer science undergraduate education or professionals with 2-3 years of software development experience. Academics, industry practitioners, and computer scientists will be able to advance their foundational machine learning knowledge with these courses and master the tools necessary to build systems that create automated decisions.
The University of Alberta is one of the most highly regarded AI institutions in the world, known for its highly distinguished research and instructors. Led by the University of Alberta Faculty of Science Assistant Professors Adam White and Martha White, Fellows at the Alberta Machine Intelligence Institute, this new Specialization will help prepare today’s workforce with innovative skills in Reinforcement Learning critical to powering AI.
“Reinforcement Learning is the future of AI,” said Martha White. “More and more, it’s becoming a key tool for anyone wanting to improve control strategies and create autonomous decision-making systems. But you can’t just use it out of the box. By giving our learners an in-depth understanding of RL, we can help them more effectively use this powerful tool.”
We are excited to launch the Reinforcement Learning Specialization with the University of Alberta to help learners keep pace with the rapidly evolving AI landscape. To enroll and learn more, visit https://www.coursera.org/specializations/reinforcement-learning
