Discover how HeyGen’s L&D solution uses AI video, interactivity, and localization to create engaging, scalable employee training in any language.
If you work in learning and development, you’re probably living this reality every day:
- Products, policies, and processes change constantly
- You’re expected to localize training for global teams
- Everyone wants engaging video, but your time and budget say “absolutely not”
In a recent HeyGen Bootcamp session, Karina Jhangiani (Head of Enterprise Product at HeyGen) walked through HeyGen’s new L&D solution, then brought on Jean-Marie Petit, Digital Learning Manager at Sibelco, to share how his L&D team is training 5,000+ employees with AI video.
This recaps that session and turns it into something you can actually act on.
The problem with traditional training
Karina started by naming the pain points most L&D teams know too well:
- Too slow: By the time a training video is filmed, edited, and approved, the content is often already outdated.
- Too expensive: Studios, cameras, crews, editors, VO talent, expensive tools… budgets disappear fast.
- Too rigid: Localization and personalization are usually afterthoughts. Translating or tweaking content means starting almost from scratch.
- Too shallow: Completion rates look nice in a dashboard, but they don’t necessarily reflect real comprehension or behavior change.
At the same time, there’s a modern L&D reality:
- One video is often too expensive to justify for a narrow or fast-changing topic
- Slides and PDFs are still everywhere, but they’re not engaging
- Your workforce is global, but localization is slow and costly
- You’re expected to keep training content perfectly in sync with an ever-changing business
This is the backdrop HeyGen designed its L&D solution for.
HeyGen’s core: AI video without the pain
Before diving into the L&D–specific features, Karina walked through HeyGen’s core building blocks that everything else sits on top of.
Hyper-realistic avatars
HeyGen is best known for its lifelike avatars. You can:
- Create a digital twin of your course instructor or SME
- Use a stock avatar from a diverse library
For L&D, this matters because instructor presence drives engagement, especially for leadership, soft skills, and compliance. HeyGen’s focus is on making that “human touch” scalable without constant reshoots.
Video Agent: From prompt to complete training video
Video Agent is HeyGen’s “AI producer”:
- You write a prompt (or paste in a rough idea)
- It writes the script, picks images, adds voiceover with emotion, and edits transitions
- You get a complete video draft you can tweak instead of starting from a blank screen
This is huge for busy L&D teams and SMEs who are experts in content, not video production.
AI Studio: Like editing a document, not a timeline
If you want more control, AI Studio gives you a familiar, document-like workflow:
- See your script on the left, canvas/video on the right
- Adjust tone, gestures, and emotions with simple controls
- Edit text as easily as editing a doc without complex video timelines
The goal: Anyone on your team can create polished training videos without technical skills.
Video translation with lip sync
HeyGen’s video translation lets you:
- Translate videos into 175+ languages and dialects
- Use advanced lip sync so the mouth movements match the new audio
- Clone voices so the translated version still sounds like the original speaker
For global L&D teams, this isn’t just about language. It’s about giving learners content in their own language and keeping the delivery believable.
Turning a horizontal platform into an L&D solution
HeyGen’s enterprise strategy is to build vertical “solutions” on top of the core platform. For L&D, Karina framed the training lifecycle in four stages:
- Create: Effortlessly produce dynamic, interactive training videos
- Localize: Translate and adapt content so every learner gets it in their preferred language
- Manage: Refresh and maintain training as policies and products change without starting from scratch
- Measure: Move beyond completion rates and track real engagement and performance signals
The new L&D solution layers specialized features onto that lifecycle.
Creation: From PDFs and PPTs to interactive training
A lot of training content already lives in decks and docs. HeyGen leans into that instead of fighting it.
Turn PowerPoints and PDFs into editable videos
You can:
- Upload a PowerPoint or PDF
- Have HeyGen autogenerate the script from the slides or use existing speaker notes
- Convert up to 50 slides into editable layouts (not just flat images)
- Edit text and elements directly on the canvas
- Animate individual elements
Result: Your existing deck becomes a living, editable video that you can update as easily as updating a slide.
Transform screen recordings into polished walkthroughs
For technical training and “how-to” content:
- Record your screen and narration
- HeyGen converts your spoken audio into a script
- You can clean up filler words, fix mistakes, and update the script later
- When a flow or UI changes, you edit the script and regenerate instead of re-recording everything
This is perfect for software onboarding, internal tools, and process walkthroughs.
Interactivity: Turning learners into participants
Karina highlighted three key interactive features (currently part of the L&D enterprise solution):
1. Quizzes inside the video
You can:
- Insert knowledge checks directly in the video
- Mark correct answers and customize feedback
- Reinforce key concepts and assess understanding in real time
Instead of “watch this, then take a separate quiz,” everything happens in one flow.
2. Branching for scenario-based learning
Branching lets you create “choose your own path” experiences:
- Add question nodes with different branches
- Link each branch to a specific scene or video segment
- Viewers see different content based on the choices they make
This is powerful for:
- Role plays (sales, customer support, leadership)
- Safety scenarios and decision-making training
- Adaptive learning paths based on learner responses
3. Embedded links and buttons
You can add clickable CTAs right in the video to:
- Link to policies, SOPs, or detailed guides
- Direct learners to your LMS courses or intranet pages
- Drive behavior change (e.g., “book a coaching session,” “acknowledge policy”)
All without pulling people out of the video context.
Localization: Training everyone, not just English speakers
Sibelco has 20+ languages across regions. Jean-Marie talked about how important localization is. Not just for understanding, but for inclusion (DEIB) and accessibility.
HeyGen supports this with:
- Multilingual player: One video, multiple languages. Learners can toggle their preferred language right in the player
- Accents and variants
- Example: Portuguese for Portugal vs. Brazil, or French for France vs. Canada
- Brand glossary: You can protect certain terms (“Sibelco,” “Moto,” product names) from being translated or control how they’re translated and pronounced
The impact is simple: more people can actually use and trust the training, not just “get through it.”
Management and LMS integration: Fitting into your stack
HeyGen is designed to plug into your existing systems instead of replacing them.
SCORM export and LMS embed
From the share/download page, you can:
- Export as SCORM 1.2 or SCORM 2004
- Customize completion rules
- Or copy an LMS HTML embed URL and drop the video into tools like Articulate or directly into your LMS
Interactive features (quizzes, branching, links) come along for the ride.
Versioning and updates
Because content is script-based and slide-based rather than fully “baked” video, updating a policy or step means:
- Edit the text
- Regenerate
- Re-export/overwrite in your LMS
Instead of reshooting an entire course, you’re just editing.
Customer spotlight: How Sibelco is scaling L&D with HeyGen
The second half of the session was a conversation with Jean-Marie, Digital Learning Manager at Sibelco, a 5,000+ employee global company in minerals and glass recycling.
His remit: A tiny L&D team (2–4 people) supporting thousands of employees across health and safety, legal, IT, HR, and more.
Life before AI video
Jean-Marie described the “before AI” world:
- PPTs everywhere, used as the main training format
- Traditional studio video that took dozens of hours to produce
- Complex collaboration with SMEs and lots of handoffs
- Limited capacity: One content designer could maybe produce one learning module per month
In his words, there’s now a clear “before and after AI” moment for L&D.
Why they turned to HeyGen
A few drivers pushed them to explore AI video:
- The need to increase content volume without growing headcount
- The desire to avoid studio time (costly, time-consuming, and inflexible)
- The opportunity to empower SMEs to become content creators, not just content sources
HeyGen let them do exactly that.
Empowering SMEs (memes) instead of bottlenecking them
Jean-Marie’s approach with SMEs is simple and smart:
- Assign them a HeyGen license
- Do a 30-minute onboarding call to show:
- How to upload a PPT/PDF
- How to create a basic video
- Where to find documentation and support
- Ask them to experiment for about an hour and create a rough draft
- Have the L&D team review, coach, and help refine version 2
- Localize and publish
Result: SMEs become autonomous creators, and L&D becomes a coaching and quality partner instead of a bottleneck.
Use cases at Sibelco
Some of the training they’ve built with HeyGen:
- Health and safety (their #1 priority as a mining company)
- Compliance modules
- Cybersecurity
- Operational processes (step-by-step, practical walkthroughs)
- HR processes (how-to, process training)
- DEIB initiatives (e.g., bringing anonymous testimonials to life with avatars)
Because the tool is horizontal, they’re not constrained to one department or topic.
Interactivity and live avatars
Sibelco is also experimenting with:
- Branching for adaptive, scenario-based learning
- Knowledge checks and embedded resources in videos
- Interactive avatars / LiveAvatar where learners can have real-time conversations with an AI-powered avatar trained on a specific knowledge base
Jean-Marie described the first time using LiveAvatar as a “wow” moment, having a natural, free-flowing conversation with an AI-driven expert.
Localization and inclusion
With 20+ languages across the company, localization isn’t optional; it’s fundamental.
They use HeyGen to:
- Translate videos into the key languages they need
- Use captions and voice to support learners with different accessibility needs
- Reflect regional differences (e.g., Portuguese in Portugal vs. Brazil)
- Maintain consistency through a glossary for technical terms and slogans
This supports not just understanding, but also diversity, inclusion, and belonging.
The measurable impact
Jean-Marie shared a few concrete shifts since adopting HeyGen:
- Dramatic increase in volume of videos produced
- Much faster turnaround time from idea to published training
- Higher view counts thanks to localization and easier access
- A more engaged and empowered SME community across functions
And perhaps the most important: L&D is no longer the only group capable of building training.
Where to start if you’re an L&D team
If you’re just beginning your AI video journey, here’s a realistic starting path inspired by the session:
- Pick one high-impact, high-visibility use case: Health and safety, compliance, or a key product/process change are great candidates
- Start with what you already have: Take an existing PPT or PDF and convert it into a video using file-to-video
- Create one digital twin: Record a short clip to create a custom avatar for a key instructor or leader
- Add light interactivity: Start with a couple of in-video quizzes or a simple branching scenario instead of going all-in on complex flows
- Localize for one or two additional languages: Use translation and the multilingual player so your team can see the impact of global reach
- Roll out to a small audience and measure: Check completions, views, and qualitative feedback. Iterate from there
- Empower SMEs: Once you’re confident, start giving HeyGen seats to your subject matter experts and coach them like Sibelco does
The bigger shift: Learning to learn, not just learning tools
Jean-Marie ended on a powerful point: the most important soft skill for the future isn’t any specific tool or method. It’s learning how to learn.
Jobs, tools, and processes will change. L&D’s role is to help people (including themselves) keep up.
AI video isn’t about replacing L&D. It’s about:
- Amplifying what humans do best
- Freeing teams from production bottlenecks
- Making high-quality, localized, interactive training actually feasible
If you’re in L&D and you’ve been feeling the tension between what’s expected and what’s realistically possible, AI video might be the bridge.
