microcredentials
(3)
Podium Education
Podium Education is an Austin-based edtech company that partners with colleges and universities to close the gap between a degree and a first job. Its flagship product, the Global Career Accelerator, is a for-credit, fully online program in which undergraduates of any major work on real projects for companies like Intel, L'Oreal, OpenAI and the GRAMMYs, build in-demand skills in data, marketing and coding, and collaborate with peers from dozens of countries. After acquiring the early-career talent platform Untapped in 2024, Podium now also connects its students directly to employers, turning coursework into a hiring pipeline.
Muzzy Lane
Muzzy Lane is a Massachusetts edtech company that builds tools for creating game-based learning simulations and roleplay assessments. Its flagship no-code Author platform lets instructional designers and publishers build immersive, decision-driven activities without programming, while its SkillBuild courses pair simulations with AI coaching to award durable-skills microcredentials. Founded in 2002 by MIT-trained engineer David McCool, the company has powered tens of millions of simulations and assessments for universities, publishers like McGraw Hill, and corporate training programs.
David McCool
David McCool is the co-founder, President and CEO of Muzzy Lane, a Massachusetts edtech company that builds 'no coding required' tools for creating online role-play simulations that teach and auto-assess skills. An MIT-trained electrical engineer who once bought a TRS-80 with paper-route money, he spent the 1990s building carrier-grade networking gear before turning his attention to whether software could make learning as engaging as a great video game. Since 2002 he has steered Muzzy Lane from WWII strategy game 'Making History' through publisher partnerships with McGraw-Hill to its current focus on SkillBuild microcredentials and generative-AI authoring tools, with tens of millions of assessments delivered.