Salaries for AI expertise soar in India due to small talent pool

Indian organisations across virtually all sectors of the economy are investing heavily in artificial intelligence, causing salaries for AI professionals to skyrocket as the gap between demand and supply widens.

With a small local talent pool, AI professionals who switch jobs are experiencing up to 80% in hikes in their salaries, compared to the average of 20-30% for IT professionals in other skill set areas.

According to recruitment companies and industry specialists, even an entry-level job involving AI can prompt 70% more over a regular computer science engineering role.

There are about 40,000 AI professionals in India, according to a recent report by online education company Great Learning, and the average AI experience of an Indian professional is only three years.

Two-thirds of AI hires have joined or transitioned into their current roles within the past two years.

However, more than half (57%) of organisations that are hiring for AI in India are seeking candidates with more than five years of experience.