In January each year, Class Central publishes a list of the most popular online courses released by major course providers in the previous 12 months. The most popular course in the latest list turned out to be Google AI Essentials, launched by Coursera in April, 2024. More than 900,000 learners have enrolled, more than the combined total of all new courses launched on edX, FutureLearn, and Swayam in the same year. What’s even more surprising is that (unlike the vast majority of Coursera course

Update (April 2026): On April 9, shareholders of both companies voted overwhelmingly to approve the merger — 99.4%% at Coursera, 99.9%% at Udemy. The deal is expected to close in the second half of 2026. I also dug into the 300-page merger prospectus and found that Coursera approached Udemy three times over two years before getting a yes, and that Pluralsight’s owner made a competing cash offer. Read the full merger history. TL;DR Coursera is acquiring Udemy in an all-stock deal worth ~$1.8 b

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