Pearson Agrees to Acquire Workera to Boost AI Workplace Upskilling

Global learning and assessment company Pearson announced on September 29 that it has agreed to acquire Workera. Workera is an AI-native skills platform currently used by organizations such as ServiceNow, Accenture, and the United States Space Force to verify employee capabilities and identify areas for improvement.

The announcement arrived less than a week after the publication of Workera’s 2026 State of Skills Intelligence Report on September 23. That report found that nearly 70% of workers use AI regularly, but almost 60% have no time to upskill. This data highlights a gap where business leaders and working professionals need to find more common ground on how to upskill for an AI-enabled world.

Workera already aimed to help organizations fill their AI skills gaps. A partnership with Pearson opens new horizons for AI upskilling and education, particularly in the workplace.

In an exclusive interview with ZDNET, Workera CEO and founder Kian Katanforoosh shared details about Ambient, an AI-native skills assessment tool currently being piloted with over 10,000 signups on the waitlist. Ambient aims to measure skills in the flow of work.

Katanforoosh told ZDNET that merging work and learning helps someone learn exponentially more than in the past. He noted that AI enables learning to come closer to work because AI understands unstructured data.

Pearson seeks to strengthen enterprise offerings

Pearson’s agreement to buy Workera indicates its desire to strengthen its enterprise offerings with adaptive skills training and assessments. The company aims to meet the increasing demand for workforce upskilling in the AI era.

In its release, Pearson stated that Workera’s technology and talent will accelerate its ability to help enterprises build workforces for AI-driven transformation. The acquisition reflects Pearson’s continued investment in enterprise skilling.

Workera’s technology gives business leaders a live baseline of workforce capabilities. According to the press release, this includes AI fluency, targeted development, verified outcomes, and better talent decisions across the board.

Founded in 2019, Workera will pair with Pearson’s heritage in the education space to usher in a new era of AI skills training. Vishaal Gupta, president of enterprise learning and skills at Pearson, said in the release that combining Workera with Pearson strengthens their ability to help enterprises close skills gaps faster.

Upon completion of the acquisition, which is anticipated in the second half of 2026, Workera will become part of Pearson’s Enterprise Learning and Skills business unit. Kian Katanforoosh will join the leadership team at Pearson following the merger.

Katanforoosh stated in the release that the combined effort will build the gold standard for workforce readiness and help people achieve more than they thought possible.