Last week, I found myself (as I often do) in a conversation. But this time, it was with Tracy Eiler, Hope Slowik, and Ryan Frazier of OpenSesame. Our discussion crystallized something I’ve been thinking about for months.
Tracy was describing how their curation team had worked with a chief learning officer to build a custom AI basics program for mid-managers and launch it the same day . What struck me wasn’t just the speed, but how this reflected OpenSesame’s evolution from a well-established content marketplace into something more sophisticated: a learning ecosystem that combines human expertise with AI capabilities to solve problems that have plagued corporate training for years.
In case you haven’t been paying attention, OpenSesame has been quietly building something remarkable. With over 2,300 customers globally and strong year-over-year growth, they’ve demonstrated consistent execution in a notoriously difficult-to-please market.
OpenSesame is in the process of solving a major corporate learning content dilemma through three integrated products: a curated marketplace of 40,000+ courses, Simon (their AI course creation tool), and Oro (their career development platform). Their secret weapon isn’t technology alone — it’s the combination of human curation with intelligent automation.
When Infinite Content Choices Became the Problem
The learning content market spent years solving the wrong problem. Vendors assumed that more content automatically meant better learning outcomes, leading to an arms race of course catalogs that grew larger but not necessarily more useful. Learning leaders found themselves drowning in options, unable to distinguish between high-quality, business-relevant content and generic offerings.
This abundance created three critical challenges:
- Content discovery nightmares — Finding the right training for specific business needs required dedicated research time that learning teams simply didn’t have
- Quality control disappeared — Vendors prioritized quantity over curation, leading to inconsistent learner experiences and poor completion rates
- Multilingual failures — Most “global” content was machine-translated rather than culturally adapted, making it ineffective for diverse workforces
Traditional players offered predictable solutions: LMS providers bundled basic content libraries that quickly became stale, consumer platforms tried to adapt individual-focused models for business buyers, and specialized vendors emerged for specific niches — forcing organizations to manage multiple relationships.
Simultaneously, learning leaders began developing content in-house using internal subject matter experts, driven by cost considerations and the need for organization-specific training. However, many organizations quickly discovered that having great SMEs didn’t automatically translate into great training — internal experts often lacked instructional design skills and bandwidth to build top quality learning experiences.
OpenSesame recognized that the real problem wasn’t access to content, but access to the right content at the right time, delivered through systems that actually work for learning professionals.
Three Innovations That Actually Matter
Content Curation That Works Like Human Expertise
OpenSesame assigns dedicated subject matter experts to each content category, treating curation as a professional discipline rather than an automated process. Each publisher meets a 42-point quality assessment, and they actively remove outdated content—retiring nearly 2,000 courses in 2024 while adding over 10,000 new ones.
The practical impact: Instead of spending weeks evaluating hundreds of potential courses, learning leaders can trust that recommendations align with their specific business needs.
AI Course Creation Built on Learning Science
Simon addresses the in-house content creation trend directly. Rather than connecting generic language models to course templates, OpenSesame trained their AI specifically on adult learning principles, Bloom’s taxonomy, and marketplace data. This lets internal SMEs focus on their domain knowledge while AI handles instructional design automatically.
Real-world application: Manufacturing organizations can convert technical documentation into engaging, interactive courses within hours, then deploy them across 70+ languages with natural-sounding voiceovers and culturally appropriate examples.
Skills Assessment That Drives Career Development
Oro uses a patented assessment tool mapping individual capabilities against 65,000+ roles. Unlike generic career pathing tools, it creates personalized learning journeys based on current skills, learning preferences, and career aspirations. Healthcare organizations reported that warehouse associates could visualize specific pathways to pharmacy technician roles, complete with personalized training plans.
Understanding the Competitive Landscape
The learning content market features several established players serving different organizational needs:
- Go1 — Comprehensive marketplace with 100,000+ courses and strong LMS integrations, attractive to organizations prioritizing maximum content variety
- LinkedIn Learning — Brand recognition and professional network integration, particularly effective for general business skills and Microsoft ecosystem organizations
- Skillsoft — Decades of enterprise experience with deep compliance and leadership expertise, serving large organizations with complex governance needs
- Udemy Business — Instructor-led content at scale with accessible interfaces, appealing to organizations valuing ease of use and broad technical skills coverage
- Coursera for Business — Academic credentials and university partnerships, ideal for formal learning pathways and executive development programs
OpenSesame differentiates itself by combining marketplace variety with human curation expertise, targeting organizations that need both content breadth and quality assurance delivered through streamlined workflows.
The Sweet Spot: Who Benefits Most
While OpenSesame can improve learning outcomes for virtually any organization, certain types see transformational results:
- Global Manufacturers and Retailers — Benefit from localized content and rapid course creation for safety training and seasonal staff onboarding
- High-Compliance Industries — Healthcare, financial services, and government contractors appreciate rigorous curation and regulatory mapping
- Rapidly Scaling Mid-Market Companies — Need enterprise-quality learning without enterprise-level complexity
- Organizations with Diverse Training Needs — Get comprehensive coverage across compliance, technical skills, leadership, and safety through a single platform
- Companies Investing in Internal Content Creation — Leverage Simon’s AI to professionalize SME knowledge while maintaining organizational focus
Why OpenSesame Commands Attention
After evaluating numerous learning content providers, OpenSesame distinguishes itself through three characteristics that matter most to learning leaders:
They’ve resolved the fundamental tension between content variety and quality that has plagued corporate learning for years. Their human curation process ensures that content breadth enhances rather than complicates the learning experience, delivering measurable results through higher completion rates.
Their AI integration reflects practical understanding of learning workflows rather than technological experimentation. Simon’s training on learning science principles enables applications that genuinely improve efficiency and effectiveness.
They’ve maintained strategic focus on solving specific business problems rather than attempting to address every aspect of talent management. While competitors chase comprehensive HR technology suites, OpenSesame concentrates on making learning content work better for organizations.
For learning leaders evaluating content solutions, OpenSesame represents a mature platform that addresses real challenges without creating new complexity. Their success stems from recognizing that the goal isn’t just providing access to learning content—it’s enabling organizations to develop capabilities more effectively while reducing administrative burden on learning teams.
