LinkedIn partners with AI apps to verify user skills

On Wednesday, LinkedIn announced a new partnership allowing users to display official certifications in AI skills on their profiles. Instead of relying on self-reported claims, the Microsoft-owned professional social network will draw on actual usage data from prominent AI applications to verify these skills. Under this program, partner platforms will use AI to assess skills as users interact with the tools, generating certificates based on usage patterns, product outcomes, and overall proficiency.

The initial group of partner applications providing usage data for these certifications includes:

• Descript: A video and podcast editor.
• Lovable: A coding application.
• Replit: A coding application.
• Relay.app: An AI agent building platform.

While the certifications will appear on user profiles alongside other professional skills, LinkedIn did not provide exact details on the qualification requirements or what users must do to be deemed proficient. The program is expected to expand, as LinkedIn plans to add more partners in the coming months. The platform is also inviting companies to register interest in participating in the new verified skills program. The certifications can also be used to show proficiency in “vibe coding”—a colloquial term for AI-assisted coding.

Future partners expected to join the program in the coming months include:

• Gamma
• GitHub
• Zapier

The initiative comes as employers increasingly prioritize practical AI capabilities. Hari Srinivasan, VP of Product at LinkedIn, said in a statement: “Jobs require fluency in the technology your employer depends on and AI proficiency; the ability to use these tools to deliver today is now the most in-demand skill. Today, trust matters more than ever. More than 100 million professionals have verified their identity on LinkedIn. Now, with the addition of verified skills, you can add an additional way to prove what you can actually do”

The demand for these verified skills is reflected in recent employment data. According to a report by the learning platform edX published last August, the number of job postings requiring AI as a skill doubled in the trailing 12 months. Additionally, a separate report from Indeed’s Hiring Lab noted that the share of U.S. job postings mentioning AI-related keywords rose to 4.2% by the end of 2025. While the tech sector remains the most common area for AI-related keywords in job postings, sectors such as banking and marketing are also seeing increases.

Why it matters

As AI proficiency becomes a critical hiring metric, LinkedIn is moving to standardize how professionals prove their technical capabilities, shifting from self-reported skills to data-backed verification.