Machine learning dominates AI job market; high demand for mid, senior-level experts

Close to 44 percent of AI professionals at foundit are seeking jobs in IT-software, followed by banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI), internet/e-commerce, engineering & design, and education/training.

Among the hottest artificial intelligence (AI) skills, machine learning (ML) tops the chart with the most number of active jobs, according to data shared by staffing companies and employment platforms.

The number of ML job posts was 2,000 in the last one year, followed by data science (1,900) and Python (1,500), according to data by specialist staffing company Xpheno.

Demand for AI skills has surged in recent years, driven by the rapid integration of AI technologies across industries. As businesses increasingly recognise the transformative potential of AI, the need for skilled professionals to develop, implement, and manage AI solutions has become critical.

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Currently, data by Xpheno suggests the total number of active AI jobs in India stands at 3,000. At the same time, the number of AI professionals has increased by 125 percent over the past year. Interpreting the data requires caution because the given percentage for a particular skill would include all professionals possessing that skill, even if they have other overlapping skills.

In terms of headcount, the number of professionals skilled in Python, a language used to build AI applications, has grown twofold to more than 224,000 over the past year. The number of ML professionals increased 90 percent to 220,000 over the past year.

ML engineers are the most in demand, with a 23 percent share of AI jobs on employment platform foundit, followed by AI scientists (15 percent) and data engineers (11 percent).

“It's important to note that although the skills mentioned above are high-demand skills in the field of AI, there is a surplus of these skills for positions outside of AI. Subsequently, among all the skilled professionals who possess a particular skill, only a fraction are employed in AI-related roles,” Prasadh MS, workforce research & communication specialist at Xpheno, told Moneycontrol.

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While there are about 2.4 million professionals proficient in Python, only 10 percent of them are engaged in AI-related work, he said.

Xpheno said data on AI job roles is influenced by professionals with overlapping skills, making it challenging to precisely determine the number dedicated to each skill. While it provides insights into skill demand, it may not accurately reflect the exact number of professionals solely dedicated to each skill due to the overlap.

Hiring by companies

Moneycontrol earlier reported that SAP Labs India, Samsung’s HARMAN Digital Transformation Solutions, Tredence and Compunnel are hiring AI talent.

While Tredence is looking for data scientists and machine learning operations (MLOps) engineers, it is particularly keen on professionals with expertise in AI/ML and cloud data platforms like Databricks and Snowflake at all levels.

Additionally, the most preferred skills include programming skills, mathematics and statistics, data handling and preprocessing, ML algorithms, deep learning, natural language processing and computer vision, data visualisation, and software development practices, according to Jai Ganesh, chief product officer of digital transformation solutions at HARMAN.

Job shifts may happen

Close to 44 percent of AI professionals at foundit are seeking jobs in IT-software, followed by banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI), internet/e-commerce, engineering & design, and education/training.
Most AI job seekers in India have at least 2-3 years of experience in software development, data analysis, or related fields. T

However, mid- and senior-level professionals are the ones most actively looking for jobs in the AI domain.

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"The future job landscape is anticipated to witness substantial growth, propelled by the increasing influence of AI. Individuals equipped with AI skills and knowledge are poised to be sought-after assets in the employment market. The pervasive integration of AI technology across diverse sectors like BFSI, healthcare, retail, and manufacturing is not only fostering the creation of novel job roles but also reshaping existing ones,” said Sekhar Garisa, CEO of foundit.

Prasadh said that while there is ample volume in the supply of these skills, there is a deficiency of mid- to senior-level experience.

“The obstacle at the supply level arises because most of the entries into the skill are freshers with minimal experience. The demand for these hot skills lies in the experienced talent pool between 10-30 years of experience with a certain AI skill,” he said.