Pearson’s Workera deal targets a big workplace problem: No time to AI upskill

Pearson, a global learning and assessment company, announced on Sept. 29 that it has agreed to acquire Workera, an AI-native skills platform. The acquisition is anticipated to be completed in H2 2026.

Workera's platform is used by organizations including ServiceNow, Accenture, and the United States Space Force to verify what employees can do and where they may need to improve. Upon completion of the acquisition, Workera will become part of Pearson's Enterprise Learning & Skills business unit, and Workera co-founder and CEO Kian Katanforoosh will join its leadership team.

Pearson said Workera's technology and talent will accelerate its ability to help enterprises build the workforce they need for AI-driven transformation, reflecting continued investment in enterprise skilling. According to the press release, Workera's technology is designed to give business leaders a live baseline of their workforce's capabilities, including AI fluency, targeted development, verified outcomes, and better talent decisions.

"Combining Workera's talented workforce and technology, with Pearson's expertise in learning and assessment, strengthens our ability to help enterprises close skills gaps faster and build more agile and capable workforces," Vishaal Gupta, president of enterprise learning and skills at Pearson, said in the release.

Katanforoosh said, "Together, we'll bring Workera's AI and Pearson's deep expertise in learning and assessment to a shared ambition: building the gold standard for workforce readiness and helping people achieve more than they thought possible."

The announcement comes less than a week after Workera's 2026 State of Skills Intelligence Report was published on Sept. 23. That report found that nearly 70% of workers use AI regularly, but almost 60% have no time to upskill. In an interview with ZDNET, Katanforoosh also discussed Workera's Ambient program, an AI-native skills assessment tool currently being piloted, with over 10,000 signups on the waitlist, which aims to measure skills in the flow of work.

Workera was founded in 2019.