ETIH Innovation Awards: Best Lifelong or Flexible Learning Solution shortlist highlights flexible learning

15 Apr

Platforms supporting adult and flexible learning models show how education is adapting to changing workforce and lifestyle demands.

As part of our ETIH Innovation Awards 2026 category spotlight series, we are taking a closer look at the categories shaping this year’s inaugural awards. With over 140 entries submitted, the breadth and quality of innovation across the EdTech sector has been clear.

This category highlights solutions supporting lifelong and flexible learning, with winners set to be announced on May 11.

How learning is adapting to work, life, and access

Best Lifelong or Flexible Learning Solution recognizes platforms designed to support learning outside traditional education structures. This includes adult education, workforce training, higher education pathways, and informal learning environments.

Judges are looking for solutions that demonstrate flexibility in delivery without compromising learning outcomes. This includes platforms offering self-paced or modular learning, mobile-first access, and personalized pathways, alongside clear evidence of engagement, completion, or skill development. The category reflects growing demand for learning that fits around work, personal commitments, and changing career paths.

Finalists

Attensi

Dawn Foods transformed training by working with Attensi to introduce game-based SKILLS solutions. As well as achieving more engaging and impactful training modules, they maximized efficiency – critically important as a time poor team. They successfully adopted Attensi’s AI CREATOR co-pilot to produce superior learning content delivered within hours as opposed to the weeks it took prior to the technology partnership. Attensi AI Co-pilot generates gamified content and simulations including voice-overs. Furthermore, the AI assistant acts as a mentor colleague – helping employees upskill and become exceptional creators. Simply adopting AI is not enough to make true transformations. Dawn Foods showcases how strategic AI adoption transforms workplaces into a new era of hybrid working – true human/AI collaboration.

Kaohsiung City Government (Generative AI for Smart Cities)

In response to digital governance challenges in the AI era, the Kaohsiung City Government launched “Tech Kaohsiung: Generative AI for Smart Cities,” a microlearning solution that supports public servants across roles and seniority levels. The program enables learners to progress at their own pace, anytime and anywhere, while directly connecting AI concepts to real-world public service scenarios. It builds both practical AI application skills and risk awareness. More than a digital course, it serves as a foundation for strengthening workforce capability and improving performance and efficiency, while supporting lifelong learning and smart city talent development.

Kaohsiung City Government (Harbor Line Digital Learning Experience)

"Traversing Yancheng's Past and Present via the Harbor Line" is a lifelong learning initiative utilizing real-world environments as classrooms, positioned as a "digital cultural and historical museum in your pocket." Featuring paperless, interactive digital content, the course empowers learners to initiate learning anytime according to their needs, serving as both an instant travel guide and a tool for in-depth cultural exploration. By transforming high-traffic tourist areas into continuous learning spaces, this initiative demonstrates the practical value of flexible learning in cultural preservation and sustainable tourism.

Learning with Experts

Learning with Experts is designed for adults balancing work, family and health responsibilities. The platform separates flexibility of access from accountability of structure. Learners study when they choose, but progress within a defined cohort with shared pace and expert guidance. This combination produces completion rates above 80% in a category where dropout is the norm. More than 100,000 learners across 91 countries have completed programmes that fit around their lives without removing the structure required to succeed.