LinkedIn Launches 14-Week Business Academy for 30 Employees

LinkedIn has launched a 14-week academy for 30 employees, using business simulations and practical projects to build skills as artificial intelligence reshapes the U.S. labor market.

The Academy of Economic Opportunity began in September 2026 as a free pilot. Participants meet three times a week and work through scenarios involving public-relations crises, hiring decisions and investor pitches. A later session covers building an app from scratch.

The pilot has no stated prerequisite for participants. Its degree-free format is limited to the initial cohort and does not establish admission rules for future groups.

LinkedIn Chief Product Officer Hari Srinivasan wrote in a LinkedIn announcement, “Our first students are in the classroom!”

“We’ve designed our program so students leave with real evidence of what they can do, not a degree,” Srinivasan said.

He said the academy is intended to help participants pursue economic independence rather than encourage everyone to become an entrepreneur.

“The program is focused on helping them learn how to build a business. Not because we believe everyone should become an entrepreneur, but because people are trying new ways to find economic independence in an uncertain world,” Srinivasan said.

The program comes as demand for AI-related skills increases. U.S. job postings requiring AI-literacy skills rose 70% year over year, while 1.3 million AI-enabled jobs emerged globally during the two years covered by the labor-market data.

Interest in independent work is also expanding. A 2026 study based on a December 2025 survey of 3,000 U.S. adults found that 47% had earned income from a side hustle during the previous 12 months. A 2025 survey of 1,011 business owners whose companies were created in 2024 found that 65% cited being their own boss as a reason for starting a business, while 55% cited building a financially secure asset.

The degree-free model has produced limited gains in hiring without bachelor’s degrees. An analysis of 11,300 roles where employers removed degree requirements estimated that the change created new opportunities for about 97,000 workers out of 77 million annual hires.

LinkedIn has not announced public enrollment, expansion beyond the pilot or pricing. The current program therefore remains limited to its 30-person employee cohort.