2026 Predictions, Image Prompts: ID Links 12/23/25

As I read online, I bookmark resources I find interesting and useful. I share these links about once a month here on my blog. This post includes links related to predictions for 2026, image prompts, workplace learning design principles, AI avatars, marketing yourself on LinkedIn, and capturing electronic signatures in Storyline.

2026 Predictions

How Corporate Learning Will Change in 2026: Predictions from 18 L&D Experts – Foxtery

Perspectives from me and 17 others in L&D on what will be trending in 2026. Recurring themes include AI, change and adaptation, shifting from content to performance, skills, and trust.

My predictions don’t entirely align with some of the other predictions, but that’s part of the value of hearing from multiple voices.

We’ll continue to see AI as a trend for L&D in 2026. But what will that really look like? A small number of organizations will push to innovate at the bleeding edge of the technology, working on truly transformative uses of AI that allow teams to do things that weren’t possible before or change the nature of work at a systemic level. Most organizations won’t move that fast though, even if the technology continues to rapidly improve.

For most organizations, AI in 2026 will look like small, useful improvements to training. L&D teams will find ways to do work they were already doing more efficiently or achieve modest improvements in training quality and learning outcomes. Small-scale experiments and pilots will increase and provide teams with better direction on what works and doesn’t work. Some organizations will start or continue working on gathering, curating, and cleaning up data and sources to prepare for future AI-enabled projects. AI will have a moderate impact on L&D for 2026, but these efforts will lay the groundwork for more significant changes in the long run.

Image prompts

Beyond Infographics: How to Use Nano Banana to *Actually* Support Learning

While this article incorrectly states limitations of earlier image generation tools (you can upload reference images and color schemes to several tools; you can get diverse images with better prompting; you can get consistency in visual style and characters), I love the ideas here for generating instructional images. Nano Banana really is much better for creating these instructional images with text. The main focus of the article is sharing use cases to support learning: visualization, analogy, worked examples, contrasting cases, and elaboration. The examples are great and show you how to go past the typical busy infographic we see with Nano Banana.

ZeroLu/awesome-nanobanana-pro: 🚀 An awesome list of curated Nano Banana pro prompts and examples.

This is a collection of image prompts for Nano Banana pro (Gemini). Great place to get some inspiration and sample prompts, especially since Nano Banana doesn’t always respond to prompts the same as other tools.

How to Create Vintage Photos Using AI – Imagine with Rashid

This isn’t something I think will come up often for training purposes, but I was curious about how to improve prompts for photorealistic images, including referencing which types of cameras were available in different decades.

Workplace learning design principles

Design Training That Actually Sticks: A Practical Starter Kit for Workplace Learning

Mike Taylor has provided a summary of five fundamental evidence-based principles of learning. For each principle, he lists what it is, why it matters, what it looks like, and a resource to help people learn more. This is a great place to get started with some basic learning science.

AI avatars

Do AI avatars teach as well as humans? The results might surprise you! – Media and Learning Association

This research was done in partnership with Synthesia, so some skepticism is warranted. But this study found that people recalled information similarly whether it was a human or AI avatar explaining it. This research didn’t compare to other forms of video or learning though, and talking head videos in general are often less effective than other instructional methods. Other research I’ve seen on AI avatars has been more mixed than this study.

1. Memory Performances were similar: It did not really matter whether learners got their information from AI or a human, through video or text – they remembered nearly the same amount at recognition and recall levels.
2. Recall performance depended on visual design: This meant tracing back to the video period corresponding to the questions, some particular visual designs were easier to memorise.

Marketing yourself on LinkedIn

Marketing is Broken! …and AI is to Blame. – Issuu

I built my network on LinkedIn before the algorithm changed and before AI changed a lot of the marketing. It’s part of my pipeline for how clients find me. However, for people who don’t already have a following, it’s a lot harder to break through the noise on LinkedIn. This article explains how marketing yourself and building a personal brand on LinkedIn has changed.

Electronic signatures in Storyline

How Can I Capture an Electronic Signature?

In one of my recent projects, we had a question about capturing an electronic signature for an acknowledgement in Storyline. This tutorial from Yukon Learning explains how to set up a short answer survey question where people can type their names as a signature. It’s obviously not as secure as something like Docusign, but it’s sufficient for some purposes.