If the onset of AI is a worry for you, then ask yourself a simple question: ‘Do I actually know how it works?’If the answer is ‘no’, ‘sort of’ or ‘I can askChatGPThow to convert recipes’ then you could probably do with some help.
Well, we’ve got great news: some of the world’s top universities are offering you their best courseware about artificial intelligence for free. Think about that. The best thinking of elite universities for free, meaning you’ll understand the advent ofGeminiorPerplexityin no time.
Whether you want to just get grounded in artificial intelligence, apply it to your business or school, or start coding in Python there is a class for you. (And, yes, I asked OpenAI’sGPT-5to help me compile this list.)
Quick picks by level
MIT —AI 101(OCW) — True Beginner
Short, workshop-style starter that demystifies key terms and includes an interactive exercise. Ideal if you’re starting from zero before jumping into CS50 AI. It’s a few years old but helps explain the fundamentals.Format: brief videos, slides, hands-on demo.
Harvard —CS50’s Introduction to AI with Python(edX) — Beginner→Intermediate
IIT Madras (India) —SWAYAM-Plus AI Series, 2025— Beginner
Carnegie Mellon —Introduction to Machine Learning (10-301/10-601), Spring 2025— Intermediate
UC Berkeley —CS189: Introduction to Machine Learning, Spring 2025— Intermediate→Advanced
Stanford —CS224N: Natural Language Processing with Deep Learning— Intermediate→Advanced
If you’re still unsure about whether you’re able to commit the time to the world of AI, you can always start a little bit simpler.OpenAI has a 101 guide to ChatGPT, or you canquickly run through Perplexity’s beginner’s guide.
Whatever you do, if you’ve got a modicum of interest (or worry) about the world of AI, then don’t delay on learning more – the quicker you understand the way this new technology works, the sooner you’ll start feeling part of the upcoming changes, rather than being beholden by them.
