Udemy: Ozzie Goldschmied Appointed CTO for AI Strategy Focus
Udemy, one of the world's largest online learning platforms, has appointed Ozzie Goldschmied as its new Chief Technology Officer.
The change comes as part of a big shake up in the firm's leadership, with Eren Bali — one of Udemy's three founders — vacating his role as CTO to become Head of Innovation.
Ozzie's is a big picture appointment, with the onus of his tenure being firmly on digital transformation and the integration of AI.
That said, he will play an integral part in the day to day running of the business as well, taking charge of the Engineering, Design, Product, Data Science and Technical Product Management departments at Udemy while catering to the needs of more than 80 million customers worldwide.
"We are excited to welcome Ozzie to Udemy’s leadership team at this transformative moment for our company,” says Hugo Sarrazin, CEO of Udemy.
“Ozzie’s expertise in developing innovative enterprise solutions that serve millions of users globally will be instrumental as we advance our transformation into a world-class, AI-powered platform to reskill and upskill the future workforce.”
Ozzie’s enterprising history
Udemy’s new CTO will bring a wealth of industry experience to the role.
Ozzie has achieved a great deal in his near three decades in tech, including co-founding Dayforce, a human capital management platform which was subsequently acquired by Ceridian in 2012.
After the acquisition, he was kept on by Ceridian as CTO, during which time he helped Dayforce become Ceridian's flagship offering.
Earlier in his career, Ozzie held senior technical roles at Workbrain, a workforce management software provider acquired by Infor Group in 2007.
Most recently, he headed GoldenRock, helping private equity and venture capital clients focus on AI applications.
This journey has paved the way for Ozzie to steer the technical vision of one of the world’s preeminent online learning entities.
A considered appointment
To Ozzie, the timing of this appointment seems auspicious.
“Udemy is uniquely positioned at the intersection of two powerful growth drivers: the rapid adoption and disruption of AI and the global imperative for continuous skills development,” he says.
“AI is impacting every industry and presents a significant opportunity to build solutions that fundamentally transform how skills are developed, measured and applied.”
Udemy’s enterprise client base — which includes giants of the corporate world including Ericsson, Glassdoor and The World Bank — uses the platform often in the professional development of staff.
Crafting a clear vision will be paramount as Udemy embarks on its future path, with Ozzie concentrating efforts on product innovation, research and AI advancement.
Eren Bali’s focus on innovation
Eren Bali, one of those who co-founded the company in 2010, returned to Udemy to bolster AI developments after leaving in 2014 to create Carbon Health.
Following a decade-long absence from Udemy’s core team, Eren resumes his influence in a newly tailored role — Head of Innovation — to champion AI breakthroughs through the firm’s Innovation Studio.
“I am incredibly excited to focus my energy on pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in skills development with technology, which is what I’m most passionate about," he says.
"Udemy’s new Innovation Studio is a dedicated space to explore and develop next-generation skilling experiences powered by AI.”
This leadership restructuring delineates responsibilities strategically, with Ozzie concentrating on scaling operations while Eren delves into visionary AI product development, which will be a fundamental part of the firm's evolution going forward.
These directional changes underscore Udemy’s ambition to lead AI-led learning solutions, promising a future that intertwines technical mastery with cutting-edge educational delivery.
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