- Thailand’s Ministry of Education and MHESI have partnered with Microsoft to roll out AI training nationwide, extending the THAI Academy program to democratize AI skills across society.
- The initiative targets over 1 million citizens by 2025, including civil servants, teachers, students, SMEs, and public officials, with free access to Microsoft’s AI Skills Navigator platform and tailored learning pathways.
- By integrating AI education into schools, universities, and businesses, the program aims to future-proof Thailand’s workforce, enhance SME competitiveness, and foster an inclusive, innovation-driven digital economy.
Thailand's Ministry of Education, Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation (MHESI) has signed a revolutionary partnership with Microsoft to transform the country's learning system using artificial intelligence. Announcing this deal extends the existing THAI Academy program, which seeks to democratize fluency in AI across Thai society at all levels.
Pivotal to the partnership is the integration of Microsoft's AI Skills Navigator, an internet-based, free-of-charge online platform with more than 200 handpicked AI courses covering from basic ideas to specialist training for software programmers. Accessible by design, the platform suggests customized learning journeys depending on specific objectives and levels of expertise, enabling anyone from novice to technology practitioner to acquire meaningful AI skills.
The size of the program is staggering: it aims to target more than 1 million Thai citizens by 2025 through partnerships with over 35 public and private organizations. It aims at many key sectors: civil servants, teachers, students in universities, SMEs, and public officials in labor and digital markets. It anticipates over 100,000 government employees taking part, with courses in AI literacy and cybersecurity.
The Education Ministry has pledged to train 4,500 teachers, reaching more than 400,000 students, while MHESI will look after AI skill development for 50,000 university students in computer science and related studies. The curriculum is integrated into national education systems at various levels through collaborations with government agencies such as IPST, NECTEC, and the Digital Government Development Agency (DGA).
Small and medium-sized businesses throughout Thailand will also gain: with the support of organizations like the Federation of Thai Industries, SMEs Development Bank, and the Thai Chamber of Commerce, more than 20,000 companies will be given AI training intended to make them more competitive.
Microsoft Thailand’s Managing Director emphasizes that such capacity building is essential for Thailand to remain globally competitive. According to LinkedIn data, 70 percent of future job skills will differ from today's, with AI demand surging nearly sixfold. This national initiative reflects Thailand’s ambition to develop an AI-empowered workforce, supporting both economic resilience and innovation-driven growth.
By bringing government organizations and business collaborations under the AI upskilling banner, this vision has Thailand poised not only to address current workforce needs but also to pioneer ethical and inclusive use of AI in education and public administration.
