Which training fits?
Four ways to learn with Merit AC. Two of them, the challenge and Build Along, are one purchase, and that purchase also includes the video course. Here is what each one is, what it needs and what you pay.
Pick by what you want to do
- Ship small AI products fast: Build Along, $99 one-time.
- Make an AI coding agent safe to run at work, with a certificate: start with course lessons 1 to 3 free. $99 one-time gets all 30; the Academy membership ($49/mo) adds the members Library, the evidence package and six governed Claude Code agents.
- Build that kind of platform yourself, on AWS: the 30-day challenge, with an optional written review of your build ($299 one-time).
- Build your own governed agent in Python: Agentic Systems, $49 once.
Side by side
| Detail | 30-day challenge | Build Along | AI Skills Academy | Agentic Systems |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best for | Engineers building a governed way for an AI coding agent to ship changes | Builders who want to ship small AI products and tools | Engineers making an AI coding agent safe to run at work | Developers building an agent that touches customers, money or data |
| Format | 30 written prompts plus a capstone spec | 20 animated walkthroughs (narration, code typed on screen, a demo). No recorded video. | 30 narrated video lessons (synthesized voice), each with a lab and a knowledge check | 14 modules, each with a narrated video (about 30 minutes, synthesized voice), a written lesson, a Python lab, tests and a knowledge check |
| Time | No fixed time per day | Not stated per lesson | About 41 hours (70 to 90 minutes per lesson) | About 18 hours (60 to 90 minutes per module) |
| What you need | Any AI chat. The real capstone needs AWS with Bedrock, Claude Code, CI and Terraform | Node 20+, and per lesson: an Anthropic API key (10 lessons), Python, a Stripe test account, n8n, an npm or Hugging Face account, a GPU, Figma | A Claude or ChatGPT chat; comfort reading YAML, Terraform and CI config. No cloud account | Python 3.10+, standard library only. No cloud account or API key |
| Separate costs | AWS, Bedrock and a Claude plan if you build the capstone | Anthropic API usage, the Chrome Web Store developer fee, GPU time, hosting | None for lessons; the six agents need a Claude Pro or Max plan | None offline; live runs use your own Anthropic key (cents per run) |
| Price | $99 one-time for the challenge and Build Along together | Same $99 one-time purchase as the challenge | $49/mo, cancel any time | $49, once |
| One payment opens | All 30 days, the 20 Build Along lessons and the 30-lesson course | The same: Build Along, all 30 days and the 30-lesson course | The 30-lesson course plus the members Library, evidence package and six governed agents with a business license | All 14 modules, the code kit and a one-business license for its code |
| Free to try | Days 1 to 3, no signup | None yet; try the challenge's free days | Lessons 1 to 3 and the module 1 simulation, no signup | Modules 1 and 2, no signup |
| Certificate | Through the included course | Through the included course | Yes, after all 30 knowledge checks | Yes, after all 14 knowledge checks |
| Not available yet | Nothing | Downloadable starter and finished code | Live workshops (none scheduled) | Nothing |
Where they overlap
The challenge, the video course and Build Along's 30-day tab use the same 30 prompts: course lesson N is built on challenge day N, and the free days 1 to 3 are the same material in both. All three end in the same capstone, a governed delivery platform. The course teaches it on a fictional company with no cloud account; the challenge has you build it for real on AWS. Agentic Systems is separate: a different scenario, its own videos and Python labs, with no lessons shared with the other three.
There's no login on any of them. Paid material opens at private links you get after checkout, and progress and certificates are kept in your browser.