AI specialist job postings and hiring has surged in the UK in the past year, with the trend impacting all sectors, according to new research.
New findings from PwC have found that job postings for AI specialist roles in the UK have soared by 61% compared with last year, representing an increase of as much as 68,000 new roles.
The integration of AI tools across the economy has naturally caused the surge, with the extent of the demand returning to 2022 levels following a slight decline in the interim.
This could suggest an initially high demand inspired by rapid and highly publicised progress in AI technology in 2022, the year that ChatGPT launched, followed by a cooling off as firms took time to understand how AI can be used and now, after several years of integration, another surge backed by a greater understanding of its potential impact across sectors.
PwC’s research has also found that wages for workers with AI skills have tripled in a year, with the average AI wage premium reaching 34.2%.
“After a period of slower growth, this increased demand for AI skills is encouraging and, whilst still a relatively low proportion of the job market, it signals a step change in how organisations are adopting AI,” said Claire Reid, chief technology and innovation officer at PwC.
The experimentation phase is over and businesses want to scale and embed the technology properly. This requires specialists who understand the art of the possible, where AI can create value in different situations, and help others do the same.
“There’s a difference between building an AI-literate workforce and expecting everyone to become an AI specialist overnight.”
