Advisor Briefing — March 2026
The opportunity in AI upskilling
Derek Lomas, PhD — TU Delft
derek@codevibing.com
Every organization needs to upskill its people on AI. The corporate training market is $400B globally, and the AI-specific segment is projected to reach $10.4B by 2033 (25% CAGR). Over 80% of enterprises will deploy GenAI applications by 2026 — but most employees don't know how to use them. The #1 barrier to AI adoption isn't technology, it's skills.
$400B
Corporate training market
25%
CAGR, AI training segment
80%
Enterprises deploying GenAI by 2026
Current solutions are either too expensive ($750–$28K/seat), too slow (months of procurement), or too generic (Coursera completion rates: 3–5%). There is no product that lets a CEO try an AI assessment in 60 seconds, enroll their team, and watch real capability develop — until now.
AI Growth Net is a self-serve AI upskilling platform for organizations. The core product is a 5-step journey — Discover, Assess, Learn, Practice, Ship — where every participant ends with a working AI project, not a certificate. The platform is AI-native: assessments adapt in real time, discovery interviews find personally relevant projects, and the curriculum teaches building with AI.
Live Product — Try It
Key Differentiators
Self-serve: CEO creates a team in 60 seconds, no procurement
CEO-tries-first: decision-maker experiences the product before buying
AI-native assessment: adapts to each person in real time
Outcome-based: every participant ships a real project
Speed: hours to first value, not months of onboarding
Freemium with enterprise tiers. Free for small teams (up to 5 people). Paid tiers unlock team management, analytics, certificates, and enterprise features. Revenue scales with seats.
| Tier | Price | Includes |
|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | 5 seats, assessment, curriculum, basic dashboard |
| Team | $29/seat/mo | Unlimited seats, manager reports, certificates, priority support |
| Enterprise | Custom | SSO, LMS integration, custom branding, dedicated CSM, invoicing |
Revenue Scenarios (Year 1–3)
| Scenario | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative 20 teams, 15 seats avg | $104K | $313K | $626K |
| Base 50 teams, 20 seats avg | $348K | $1.0M | $2.1M |
| Aggressive 100 teams, 30 seats avg + enterprise | $1.0M | $3.5M | $8.7M |
Conservative assumes organic growth only. Base assumes light marketing + partnerships. Aggressive assumes enterprise sales motion + 2–3 large contracts ($50K+ each). All scenarios assume $29/seat/mo with 3x YoY growth on team tier.
~$0
Customer acquisition (self-serve)
$29
Revenue per seat/mo
~$2
Marginal cost per seat/mo
93%
Gross margin
Infrastructure is serverless (Vercel + Supabase). AI API costs (Gemini, Claude) are the primary variable expense at ~$0.02–0.05 per assessment interaction. No instructors, no physical materials. Software margins from day one.
High Price + Sales-Led
Berkeley Haas
$6,500–$28K/person
High Price + Platform
SectionAI
$750/seat
Freemium + Self-Serve
AI Growth Net
$0–$29/seat
Government-Funded
Multiverse
Levy-funded (UK only)
SectionAI ($750/seat)
Closest competitor. Instructor-led cohorts, strong content. But slow enrollment, requires procurement. A CEO can't try it themselves. We're 25x cheaper and instant.
Multiverse (UK, levy-funded)
Best UX in the space. But UK-only, tied to apprenticeship levy. Not transferable to other markets. We're global from day one.
Berkeley Haas ($6.5K–$28K)
Prestige play for senior leaders. Multi-week, instructor-led. Teaches about AI, not building with AI. We deliver hands-on capability at 1% of the cost.
Coursera / LinkedIn Learning
Massive libraries, 3–5% completion rates. No team accountability, no adaptive assessment, no real outcome. We focus on capability, not content.
AI Growth Net is developed by Derek Lomas, PhD, faculty at TU Delft (Delft University of Technology, #2 in Europe for engineering). Published researcher on AI-assisted learning, prompt design, and computational wellbeing. Previously built Source Library (1,900+ AI-translated historical texts) and the CodeVibing community.
The TU Delft connection opens three paths: (1) university-backed certification that carries weight in enterprise sales, (2) research partnerships that validate learning outcomes, and (3) access to the European innovation and L&D ecosystem. No competitor has the combination of an AI-native product and human-centered design research backing.
Phase 1 is product-led growth: free tier drives adoption, CEO tries it first, team grows organically. Phase 2 adds a lightweight enterprise motion where product-qualified leads (teams >20 seats) get outreach from a sales contact for enterprise tier conversion.
Growth Channels
CEO-tries-first loop
CEO takes assessment → enrolls team → dashboard creates accountability → team grows. Zero friction entry.
Content marketing & thought leadership
AI upskilling research, TU Delft credibility, LinkedIn/newsletter. Positions Derek as the expert voice.
Partnership channel
Consulting firms, accelerators, and L&D platforms that need an AI upskilling component but don't want to build one.
Enterprise outbound (Phase 2)
Target L&D leaders at mid-market companies (500–5,000 employees). Product demo is the product itself — no slideware.
Key Insight
The product is the sales demo. Every prospect interaction starts with "try the assessment yourself" — not a slideshow. This is the self-serve wedge that no competitor offers.
Shipped
AI assessment chatbot (96 items, 11 topics, adaptive)
5-step journey: Discover → Assess → Learn → Practice → Ship
Team creation, invite links, real-time dashboard
Voice-based AI discovery interview (ElevenLabs)
Dual-audience routing (ai-growth.net + learnvibecoding)
Next
Completion certificates (individual + team)
Manager reports — exportable, skill gap analysis
Assessment scoring with benchmarking
Stripe integration — Team tier billing
First 10 paying teams (target: $8.7K MRR)
Scale
Enterprise tier: SSO, LMS integration (SCORM/xAPI), custom branding
Partner API — white-label for consulting firms
Multi-language (Dutch, German, French)
TU Delft research publication on learning outcomes
First enterprise contract ($50K+ ACV)
What I'm Looking For
Advisory input
Strategic guidance on GTM, pricing, and enterprise sales — especially from people who've sold to L&D teams.
Introductions
Warm intros to L&D leaders, HR heads, or CEOs at companies (500–5,000 employees) who need AI upskilling.
Pilot partners
3–5 organizations willing to run a paid pilot ($5K–$15K, 3 months). Product is live and ready.
1. Enterprise sales: hire a sales rep, partner with a consulting firm, or stay self-serve longer?
Product is self-serve. Enterprise L&D expects a sales contact. Building sales is expensive but may be necessary for $50K+ contracts.
2. Pricing validation: is $29/seat/mo the right anchor? Should enterprise be usage-based, per-seat, or flat-fee?
SectionAI charges $750/seat. We're 25x cheaper. Is that an advantage or does it signal 'not serious'?
3. TU Delft: formal spin-off, research partnership, or fully independent?
University backing adds credibility. But spin-off processes are slow and IP can get complicated.
4. Target buyer: CEOs directly, L&D/HR teams, or consulting partners who resell?
Currently targeting CEOs. L&D teams hold the budget. Consultants have the relationships.
5. Geography: start Netherlands/EU or go global immediately?
TU Delft gives EU anchor. EU AI regulation is driving upskilling demand. Product is English-only currently.
derek@codevibing.com · ai-growth.net
March 2026