Another great Fusion conference is in the books – a sold-out event in Toronto, not far from where we started D2L 25 years ago. This year, we talked about our learning transformation. We asked how we can make learning more personal and engaging, so that we can seize opportunities and help people achieve more than they ever dreamed possible.
As I reflect on Fusion 2024, three key themes stand out:
1. Embracing AI Thoughtfully
We were excited to launch D2L Lumi at Fusion. D2L Lumi is a new AI-powered feature that will help create better content, assessments, and activities and be available across all D2L’s core products.
We created D2L Lumi from the ground up, with a responsible and thoughtful approach to data and privacy. The opportunities and risks of embracing AI is something we heard about at the Fusion Executive Summit. Both the Summit’s keynote speaker, David Autor, the Rubinstein Professor of Economics at MIT, and the Vector Institute’s Shingai Manjengwa emphasized the importance of keeping human goals at the center of AI development.
Our closing keynote speaker, Elatia Abate – a renowned futurist-in-residence at Paylocity and founder of the consulting firm The Future of Now – reminded us that AI can be a human empowerment tool. It’s an exciting, but disruptive time. To navigate it, Elatia said that we must learn to transform chaos into clarity, evolve from fear to fearlessness, and make a transition from isolation to connection.
Tools like AI and competency-based learning have the power to free up time and truly transform learning, but as we adopt these new technologies, we must ask the right questions about our goals and our outcomes. First we shape our tools, then they shape us. This is why we need to have the right hands continually shaping the tools to build a better learning experience for everyone. And at D2L, we are working hard to make these innovations much easier to implement to have a bigger impact.
2. Learning Will Always be Deeply Human
Despite the ongoing digital transformation around us, we must remember that learning is a fundamentally human endeavor. Learning-inspired progress happens when we feel that human connection to the profession or subject we are pursuing, our classmates/peers, our instructors, and our communities.
One of the most moving portions of the conference was when Robb Nash spoke about the impact his mental health education Project has had on countless young people across Canada. And we also saw through performances from the Canada’s National Ballet School and the Stratford Festival, how art can lift us – and can be thoughtfully weaved into the educational journey for everyone.
3. Innovation Still Drives D2L
Finally, one of the biggest announcements at Fusion was D2L’s acquisition of H5P Group. H5P is a global leader in providing interactive content creation software that’s used by millions of educators and organizations around the world. We’re thrilled that H5P will now be a dedicated product group within D2L, and we look forward to contributing to and supporting the H5P community.
We made this move because we believe in helping to provide the best learning experiences possible – and we know that great interactive content can help boost engagement and outcomes. I’m proud that we’re going to support more high-quality, rich learning experiences and raise the standard for content everywhere. As we move forward, we will always keep in mind that people drive technology’s success.
Thank you so much to everyone who joined us for Fusion 2024, either in person or online. You all continue to inspire and motivate us at D2L. And if you couldn’t make it this year, please consider joining us in 2025 – in Savannah, Georgia!
Let’s continue to transform the way the world learns, together!
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