AWS Launches Free AI Education Program for 100,000 Learners Worldwide

Breaking: AWS Unveils Massive Free AI Education Initiative

Amazon Web Services today announced the 2026 AWS AI & ML Scholars program, offering free artificial intelligence and machine learning education to up to 100,000 individuals globally. The top 4,500 performers will receive a fully funded three-month Udacity Nanodegree. Applications are open until June 24, 2026, and anyone aged 18 or older can apply with no prior experience required.

“Our goal is to democratize AI education and empower the next generation of builders,” said Swami Sivasubramanian, Vice President of AWS Agentic AI, in a statement. “This program removes barriers to entry and provides a clear pathway from foundational skills to advanced expertise.”

Program Structure: Two Phases to AI Mastery

The program consists of a Challenge phase where participants learn foundational generative AI skills. Following that, the top 4,500 scorers gain access to a fully subsidized Udacity Nanodegree. AWS expects the program to attract learners from diverse backgrounds, including those without technical degrees.

“We’ve designed the curriculum to be accessible yet rigorous,” added Sivasubramanian. “This isn’t a certificate of completion—it’s a launchpad for careers in AI.”

Other Major AWS Announcements This Week

AWS Summit Season Begins

The AWS Summit season kicks off April 1 in Paris, followed by London on April 22. These free in-person events bring together cloud builders and innovators to explore new technologies and network. Attendees can register through the AWS Summits portal.

Amazon Aurora PostgreSQL Gets Faster and Free

Amazon Aurora PostgreSQL now supports express configuration, allowing database creation in seconds with just two clicks. The streamlined setup uses preconfigured defaults, and users can modify settings after launch. Additionally, Aurora PostgreSQL is now available on the AWS Free Tier. New customers receive $100 in AWS credits upon sign-up, with an additional $100 in credits for using Amazon RDS.

Agent Plugin for AWS Serverless

A new Agent Plugin for AWS Serverless enables developers to build, deploy, and manage serverless applications using AI coding assistants like Kiro, Claude Code, and Cursor. The plugin packages skills, sub-agents, and Model Context Protocol servers into a single modular unit, automatically loading relevant guidance throughout development.

Amazon SageMaker Studio Integrates with Kiro and Cursor

SageMaker Studio now supports remote connections from Kiro and Cursor IDEs, letting developers use their existing setups for spec-driven development and conversational coding while accessing scalable compute resources on AWS.

Visual Customization for AWS Management Console

AWS Management Console now allows users to apply visual settings such as account colors and hide unused regions and services. This reduces cognitive load and speeds up workflows.

Background

AWS has long invested in education through programs like AWS Educate and AWS Academy, but the AI/ML Scholars program represents the company’s largest single initiative focused on generative AI. The move comes as demand for AI skills skyrockets, with the World Economic Forum predicting 97 million new AI-related roles by 2025. AWS aims to fill the talent gap while strengthening its ecosystem of certified practitioners.

This program also builds on the success of earlier AI scholarships offered by Udacity and AWS, which trained thousands of students in machine learning fundamentals. The addition of a competitive Challenge phase is designed to identify the most motivated learners.

What This Means

For learners, the program offers a risk-free pathway to advanced AI skills—a fully funded Nanodegree that would typically cost thousands of dollars. For employers, it creates a pipeline of trained talent familiar with AWS AI services. For AWS, it reinforces its position as the leading cloud provider for AI workloads, potentially driving future adoption of its services.

Industry analysts note that this initiative could pressure competitors like Google Cloud and Microsoft Azure to launch similar large-scale educational programs. “AWS is betting that free training will translate into long-term customer loyalty,” said tech analyst Sarah Chen. “It’s a smart move in a market where skills shortages are the biggest obstacle to cloud AI adoption.”

The program opens applications immediately, with a June 24 deadline. Interested candidates can apply on the AWS AI & ML Scholars webpage.