What does 2026 have in store for the e-learning industry?
With over 10 years of experience in marketing and advertising, Raneem Mourad moved to the EdTech sector in 2013 and became Managing Partner of Kashida in 2016. Kashida designs and produces bespoke, impactful eLearning content across platforms to meet the unique needs of her clients. As Kashida’s Partner and Director of Growth, Raneem leads a team of talented designers, developers, and learning experience designers, and oversees the business development, market research, and customer relations aspects of the company. Today, she talks about what 2026 will bring for EdTech and eLearning, based on her experience working with global organizations and custom learning design.
The past year has brought considerable innovation to the e-learning space. What should L&D leaders be excited about in 2026?
I’m really looking forward to it. But what I think L&D leaders should be most excited about is the fact that we now have more flexibility than ever before in how we design and deliver learning. The question is no longer which technology to use, but what kind of experience learners actually need. This shift in thinking opens the door to much more meaningful and context-aware learning through digital programs, blended formats, or more immersive experiences.
What excites me most about 2026 isn’t a single technology or trend. This is due to the increasing maturity of the e-learning field itself. We are finally moving away from the tools themselves and toward more thoughtful conversations about purpose, impact, and relevance.
I also feel like there’s more emphasis on adaptability. Organizations are increasingly recognizing that learning can no longer be static. It must evolve around people, roles, and priorities. In our work, this means designing learning experiences that can grow over time, rather than being locked into a single format or platform.
Overall, 2026 feels like the moment when L&D can further embrace its strategic role. The focus is on enabling real capacity building rather than content creation.
Based on your years of experience in custom learning development, how do you see technology, design, and strategy evolving?
One of the most important changes I have observed is that technology, design, and strategy are no longer treated as separate conversations. Today, the most effective learning initiatives are those in which these three elements are intentionally aligned from the beginning.
Design, in particular, has taken on a more strategic role. Designing learning experiences isn’t just about building content or adding interactivity. It’s important to understand your learners, organizational realities, and desired behaviors, and make intentional choices about how technology can support those goals.
In many of the projects we work on, technology decisions are made after deep design discussions. The order is important. This allows technology to act as an enabler rather than a constraint. As tools continue to evolve, this approach also increases organizational resilience. Organizations are not tied to a single solution, but to a clear design logic that can be adapted over time.
Ultimately, this evolution shows that good learning outcomes don’t just come from innovation. They emerge from thoughtful integration, where strategy provides direction, design provides structure, and technology supports execution.
How can organizations prepare for a rapidly changing digital learning environment? Why is it so important for them to focus on human-centered design?
In my opinion, the best way for organizations to prepare for change is to base their learning efforts on a deep understanding of their people. Technology will continue to change, but the learner – their motivations, pressures and constraints – will remain the most important factor.
Human-centered design helps organizations build resilient learning. Designing experiences around how users actually work and learn allows them to evolve without losing relevance. I’ve seen many organizations invest heavily in platforms, only to find out later that the learnings don’t translate into real behavior change. This usually happens when design decisions are not rooted in the learner’s reality.
A human-centered approach forces you to ask the key question early on: “What problem are we solving?” What does success look like for learners? What barriers might they face? These questions shape everything that follows, including how they use technology.
Preparing for changing conditions does not mean perfectly predicting the future. It’s about building a learning ecosystem that is flexible, empathetic, and aligned with the organization’s actual goals. When you design from a human perspective, it’s much easier to adapt to whatever happens next.
Can you tell us a little more about Kashida’s design methodology and how it helps you (and your clients) respond to changes in technology?
We made a strategic decision more than a decade ago that our design methodology always starts with people, not platforms. Every project begins with an understanding of the learner, the context, and the type of change the learning is intended to support. Only then can we make decisions about formats, tools, and technology.
It wasn’t always easy to convince clients to start with design strategy first. Many people initially want to know what the final output will look like before committing. But once they go through the LXD process and experience it firsthand, trust is built because the results are more meaningful, relevant, and impactful for both the learner and the organization.
This human-centered, technology-agnostic approach enables us and our clients to address technological change with confidence. For example, in programs like NetHope’s Women Leaders initiative, where learners come from such diverse cultural and professional backgrounds, starting with a design strategy has ensured that the learning experience remains consistent and relevant even as delivery formats evolve.
We’ve seen how this methodology creates continuity across different types of projects, even when technology changes along the way. Clear design logic allows new tools to be integrated thoughtfully rather than destructively. That is ultimately what makes learning feel ready for the future.
What role do you think AI will play in the future of custom learning design, and where do you think AI and human collaboration will go?
We are already seeing AI play a role in custom learning in many ways. From a design perspective, we see AI as a powerful support rather than a replacement. Its real value lies in how it enhances human expertise, especially by increasing efficiency and opening new possibilities for personalization and scale.
We are already using AI to streamline some parts of the development process, giving learning designers more space to focus on what truly requires human judgment: understanding context, navigating complexity, and designing experiences that drive meaningful change. For us, AI enhances rather than diminishes the role of learning designers.
AI has also become a powerful tool on the production floor. This allows us to quickly develop pilots and test ideas, visuals, and narrative directions early, allowing our clients to align with their strategy through concrete examples in a more cost- and time-effective manner. This is especially valuable for projects dealing with complex or sensitive topics, such as work on digital financial literacy, where repeatability and clarity are important.
Looking forward, I think collaboration between AI and humans will move toward a more intentional partnership. We define our goals, values, and ethical boundaries. AI supports exploration, adaptation, and responsiveness. The risk, of course, is using AI without a strong design foundation. Without it, it can remain superficial, or worse, introduce cultural or contextual inaccuracies.
Grounded in human-centered design and clear learning objectives, AI becomes a tool that truly expands possibilities while keeping humans firmly at the center of the learning experience.
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A big thank you to Raneem for sharing his insights on human-first learning design and solving L&D challenges. If you would like to know how Kashida can support your 2026 learning strategy, contact us today to schedule a free 30-minute consultation to discuss your specific needs.
