HowNow – the AI-powered learning and skills platform today announces ‘HowNow Guru’ – an AI agent that teaches, challenges, and adapts to the individual learner’s capabilities and skills gaps, delivering the right verified expert knowledge and expertise, when they need it.
Unlike traditional learning tools, Guru does not deliver generic content or passive learning experiences. It acts as an always-on coach that understands the learner, adapts to their skill level, and delivers feedback and support based on how they practise, what they need to improve on, and the business context they work in.
Employees can use Guru to simulate real-world scenarios through AI-generated role-plays, complete knowledge checks and quizzes tailored to their level, explore deeper concepts through linked insights, and track their progress with ongoing skill reviews. Every interaction adapts to how they learn, what they’ve mastered, and what still needs work – turning one conversation into a complete learning journey. Guru is also embedded into the HowNow platform, which enables it to draw on the organisation’s content, the learner’s history, and live performance data to deliver timely, relevant support – and all without increasing admin or complexity for L&D teams.
Nelson Sivalingam, Co-Founder and CEO at HowNow, said: “In Guru, we’ve essentially created a world-class teacher that not only knows everything the organisation knows, but which is also equipped with the frameworks it needs to coach people in the best way possible. It can teach, challenge, quiz, provide feedback and guidance – and because Guru is embedded directly into the HowNow platform, it also understands the learner’s unique aptitude and ability, which informs highly bespoke learning and effective behaviour change.”
Sivalingam added: “Guru is built from the ground up as an AI learning agent – it’s interactive, personalised, and deeply connected to the organisation. It gives every employee the opportunity to practise, improve, and grow, without waiting on a course or coach.”
Customers can choose to power Guru using their own learning content or connect it with third-party sources, including HowNow partners, Assemble You and getAbstract.
getAbstract – the world’s largest library of verified expert knowledge – enables Guru to use insights from trusted thought leaders and apply them in coaching conversations, turning abstract ideas into actionable guidance.
Commenting on its partnership with HowNow, Thomas Bergen, Co-Founder and CEO at getAbstract said: “The quality of AI agents depends profoundly on the quality of the underlying knowledge base. With getAbstract as its verified expert knowledge partner HowNow has chosen the best database for AI coaches in the market.”
HowNow’s continued investment in AI-powered learning tech feeds a strong appetite amongst the L&D community. Findings from the 2025 L&D Global Sentiment Survey (GSS) confirm that AI remains top of mind, having retained the survey’s number one spot with nearly a quarter (22.6%) of all votes, up from 21.5% last year.
The annual GSS invites the global L&D community to cast their votes on what will be hot in workplace L&D over the coming year, with respondents choosing up to three options from a list of sixteen. The 2025 survey findings received votes from 3,339 respondents across 93 countries, and will be announced at Learning Technologies UK on the 23rd and 24th of April.
Donald H. Taylor, Lead Researcher for the L&D Global Sentiment Survey 2025, and Chair of Learning Technologies UK, said: “AI’s ascendancy began in the 2023 survey, following the launch of ChatGPT, and is bucking the normal trend for votes to decline over time as options become less ‘hot’. L&D’s high interest in AI is indicative of the opportunities it presents to employees and the organisation – and innovative AI coaches are creating new and faster routes to effective upskilling at scale.”
