The AI Literacy Certificate is now the Certified Applied AI Associate (AIAC-CAAA). Existing holders keep the same identifier and verification link.See the credential →
AI literacy test · AIAC-CAAA
Take the AI literacy test and become a Certified Applied AI Associate
The Council’s flagship credential. One 30-minute online assessment, no course required, and the Certified Applied AI Associate on the public register. For organisations, a dated and checkable record of who has been assessed, and on what.
§ 1 — Why it exists
One credential, open to any adult
AI is now part of everyday work and life; understanding it is a skill worth being able to prove. The Certified Applied AI Associate is that proof. It is a 30-minute assessment of what AI is, how it works, where it fails, and why organisations govern it. No background is assumed and no profession is presumed — anyone aged 18 or over can take it, and anyone at all can verify it on the public register.
No course required. A free self-paced video course, twenty lessons of about eight minutes, is available in the candidate portal to anyone with an account, and the syllabus below states what is assessed and lists free third-party preparation as well.
§ 2 — Why it exists
Everyone uses AI now. Few can show what they know.
AI tools arrived on almost every desk in about two years. People now use them for real work — writing, hiring, checking numbers, drafting documents — and almost nobody has ever been asked what they actually understand about them.
That is starting to change. Employers are being asked the question by their customers, by their own boards, and now by regulators. The EU’s AI Act has asked companies that use AI to build their staff’s understanding of it since February 2025, and an amendment in July 2026 softened that to taking measures that support it. It does not say how, and it names no course, level or certificate. How Article 4 reads now
So what helps is proof: one person, one date, checkable by anyone.
You take a short online assessment. Pass, and you are a Certified Applied AI Associate, with your name on the credential and an entry on a public register that anyone can look up — an employer, a recruiter, a client — without asking you or us. You confirm you are eighteen or over before you start, and no identity documents are needed. It never expires, and if you do not pass you can take it again at no further charge.
§ 3 — Who it serves
Who it is for
- Working professionals
- AI tools are in the workflow whether or not the job title says so. A verified baseline shows an employer the judgement behind the use — when to rely on a model output, when to check it, and when to escalate.
- Students and graduates
- A CV line that says "familiar with AI" is unverifiable. A register entry an employer can check in ten seconds is not.
- Career switchers
- Moving into any role that now touches AI — which is most of them — a verified baseline travels with you. It is also the starting point of the Council’s certification pathway, whichever track follows.
- Teams and managers
- A common vocabulary for a team adopting AI: what a model can and cannot promise, what responsible use looks like, and why the organisation governs it.
Whichever of these you are, the assessment takes 30 minutes.
§ 4 — How it works
Four steps
- 01
Register
Create a candidate account with your name and email, the same account that serves the professional certifications later. Nothing is payable to register.
- 02
Get a coupon code, or pay the fee
Take the AI-Readiness Check, which takes about two minutes, and share your result on LinkedIn to receive a coupon code that waives the assessment fee. Or pay the fee. One fee or one code covers every attempt. You then confirm you are eighteen or over. No identity documents are needed.
- 03
Take the 30-minute assessment
About 30 multiple-choice questions drawn from the published syllabus, weighted by domain and randomised per attempt. Online and timed, with an immediate result. Pass mark 70%; a failed attempt shows your score by domain and can be retaken after 7 days at no further charge.
- 04
Become a Certified Applied AI Associate
Pass and the credential is issued at once, with a unique AIAC-L identifier, a public register entry, the letters AIAC-CAAA to use after your name, and a badge you can add to LinkedIn in one click. It carries the name on your account, so check it before you start.
Assessment facts
- Questions
- ~30
- Time limit
- 30 min
- Pass mark
- 70%
- Delivery
- Online
- Fee
- US$199*
- Retake
- 7 days
One best answer from four options; each attempt draws fresh questions against the domain weights. It runs in full screen and is taken in one sitting. Closing or reloading its window submits it as it stands. Leaving the window gives a warning, and at warning 3 of 3, or after more than 10 seconds away, it is submitted.* Waived with a coupon code. Complete the AI-Readiness Check, share your result on LinkedIn and paste the address of the post on your result page, and the code arrives by email. One fee or one code covers every attempt. How to get a code
§ 5 — Syllabus
What the assessment covers
Five domains, weighted as below. Nothing outside this blueprint is examined.
| # | Domain | Weight | Covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | AI fundamentals | 20% | What AI is and is not, machine learning versus rule-based systems, narrow versus general AI, and the common terms in everyday use. |
| 2 | How AI works | 20% | Data, training, and models; why AI systems err; and what it means that outputs are probabilistic rather than certain. |
| 3 | Generative AI and everyday use | 20% | Large language models, prompting basics, the common tools, and sensible workplace use cases. |
| 4 | Risks, limits and responsible use | 25% | Hallucinations, bias, privacy, deepfakes, verification habits, disclosure of AI use, and human oversight. |
| 5 | AI governance awareness | 15% | Why organisations govern AI; what AI policies and governance frameworks typically cover, and the principles common to them — fairness, accountability, transparency, human oversight; and what AI assurance means as a profession. |
Recommended free preparation
The Council's own video course, free in the candidate portal, covers the five domains above at their examination weights. The resources below are free and published by others, and listing is not endorsement of a provider. The credential certifies what you know, not where you learned it, and no course is required.
- Elements of AIUniversity of Helsinki / MinnaLearn
- AI for Everyone (AI4E)AI Singapore
- Free generative AI coursesMicrosoft / LinkedIn Learning
- AI Fluency: Framework and FoundationsAnthropic
§ 6 — What you receive
What you receive
- A digital certificate
- Carrying your name as registered, the issue date, and a unique identifier in the AIAC-L namespace. Identifiers are never reused.
- A public register entry
- Every certificate has its own verification page showing the holder, the credential, the issue date, and its current status. Anyone with the identifier can check it — no account, no contact with the holder.
- A LinkedIn badge
- One click takes the credential to your profile with the verification link attached, so a recruiter who clicks it lands on the register entry, not a claim.
Register entries follow the same rule as everything the Council records: nothing is ever deleted. A certificate that is withdrawn stays on the register and says so.
§ 7 — The pathway
Next step, the finance and accounting credentials
The certification register holds the professional credentials. Those are exams: you sit them under recorded supervision, every result is reviewed by a person before release, and the questions ask what you would do rather than what you can recall.
Most people start here, with the Certified Applied AI Associate. You do not need it first, and it earns you nothing in the exam. It is simply the sensible place to begin.
They are for people who use AI in their own profession rather than check other people’s systems. The first is finance and accounting, in two grades: Certified AI in Finance & Accounting — Fundamentals and Certified AI in Finance & Accounting — Professional.
§ 8 — Guides
Guides to the Certified Applied AI Associate and to AI literacy
- The AI literacy assessment syllabus
- AI literacy practice test, with answers
- How to prepare, a seven-day study plan
- The AI-Readiness Check
- The Certified Applied AI Associate, the credential page
- Adding the credential to LinkedIn and your CV
- Assessing AI literacy across a team
- AI literacy testing for hiring
- EU AI Act Article 4 explained
- AI literacy rules and free training by country
- AI certificates compared
- What AI literacy means
- The skills behind AI literacy
- AI literacy against digital literacy
- AI literacy frameworks compared
- The AI skills employers want
- AI literacy for accountants
§ 9 — FAQ
AI literacy test, frequently asked questions
How much does the AI literacy test cost?
The assessment carries one fee, shown in the assessment facts above, and it covers every attempt. A failed attempt can be retaken at no further charge, and there is no renewal because the credential does not expire. A coupon code waives the fee in full.
How do I get a coupon code for the AI literacy test?
Complete the AI-Readiness Check, share your result on LinkedIn and paste the address of the post on your result page. The code arrives by email, waives the fee in full, and covers every attempt, retakes included. How the coupon code works.
What does the AI literacy test cover?
Five domains. AI fundamentals (20%), how AI works (20%), generative AI and everyday use (20%), risks, limits and responsible use (25%), and AI governance awareness (15%). Risk and governance carry the most weight because that is where workplace use of AI goes wrong. The AI literacy syllabus lists every topic.
How many questions are on the AI literacy assessment, and how long does it take?
About 30 multiple-choice questions in 30 minutes, online, with one best answer from four options. The pass mark is 70%. Each paper is drawn fresh from a much larger question bank, with the order of questions and options randomised.
How hard is the AI literacy test?
It assesses working understanding, not expertise. Anyone who uses AI tools thoughtfully and has read the syllabus can expect to pass. Starting cold, work through the free preparation above first. Try the AI literacy practice test, ten questions with answers.
How should I prepare for the AI literacy test?
Read the syllabus, take the practice test, and fill the gaps with free material such as the Council’s own video course, Elements of AI or Anthropic’s AI Fluency course. Most candidates need two to five hours. The seven-day study plan sets out what to cover each day.
Is the AI literacy assessment proctored?
No. It is unproctored and machine-marked. Its integrity is structural. Papers are drawn fresh from a large bank in random order, the clock is fixed, marking happens on the server, each person holds one certificate and attempts are rate-limited. The Council’s certifications are remotely proctored and recorded, and every result is reviewed by a person before it is released.
Do I need ID to take the AI literacy test?
No. You confirm you are eighteen or over, and no identity documents are needed for this credential. Identity verification with a government-issued document and a face check applies to the Council’s examinations, where the credential carries a verified name.
Can I retake the AI literacy test if I fail?
Yes. A failed attempt can be retaken after seven days at no further charge, and your score in each of the five domains is shown so you know what to revise. Each person holds it at most once, so a pass cannot be re-sat to improve it.
Does the Certified Applied AI Associate expire?
No. It does not expire and there is nothing to renew. It carries its issue date, so anyone reading it can see how recent it is.
Can I add the Certified Applied AI Associate to LinkedIn and my CV?
Yes. It goes by name, identifier and the letters AIAC-CAAA, and it goes in the Licenses and certifications section of LinkedIn with the verification link attached. How to add it to LinkedIn and your CV, step by step.
How can an employer verify a Certified Applied AI Associate?
Enter the identifier on the public register. The entry shows the holder’s name, the credential, its issue date and its current status. No account is needed and checking costs nothing. AI literacy testing for employers.
Does the EU AI Act require an AI literacy certificate?
No. Article 4 of the EU AI Act asks providers and deployers to take measures that support the AI literacy of their staff, a duty softened by the 2026 amendment, and it names no certificate, course or exam. An assessed credential is one form of evidence among several. How Article 4 reads now.
Does the Certified Applied AI Associate make me a member of the AI Assurance Council?
It puts you on the register as Registered, the permanent standing it confers, with no annual fee. That carries your name, credential and verification link on the public register, the monthly public edition of the newsletter, the published summary of the AI Skills Index, and sight of the job board. Paid membership begins with a professional examination.
Can I use AIAC-CAAA after my name?
Yes. A holder may write AIAC-CAAA after their name, on a profile, in a signature or on a CV, ideally with the verification link beside it so anyone can check it.
What happened to the AI Literacy Certificate?
It became the Certified Applied AI Associate. Every holder of the AI Literacy Certificate has been upgraded to the Certified Applied AI Associate, with the same identifier, the same issue date and the same verification link. The assessment and the syllabus are the same, so there is nothing to retake.
What is the difference between the Certified Applied AI Associate and the finance and accounting credentials?
The Certified Applied AI Associate shows you understand AI and use it soundly at work, assessed online in 30 minutes. The finance and accounting credentials show you can do that profession’s work with it, examined under proctored, recorded conditions, with identity verified and every result reviewed by a person before it is released. Most people start here, and nothing requires it. See the certifications.
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Become a Certified Applied AI Associate today
Thirty minutes online, a result the moment you finish, and a credential anyone can check. The syllabus above is exactly what is assessed.