The top 10 AI skills employees need now

February 21, 2024 3:19 PM

Man sitting at a desk staring at computer code. — Adobe Stock

As the use of artificial intelligence in the workforce continues to evolve, certain AI skills will quickly become more valuable to organizations than others.

Since January, more than 39,496 workers have already been let go, according to tracking website Layoffs.fyi, with many employers citing AI investment as the reason for cuts. To help tech workers and all employees stay ahead of the curve and make more money in the process, job search platform Indeed released its ranking of most in-demand AI skills.

"In today's workplace, tech workers — and really, most workers — need to be adaptable as AI continues to impact the world of work," Donal McMahon, VP of data science at Indeed said in a release. "Everyone can benefit in learning about the basics of AI, as nearly every tech role now has to be an AI role."

In order to rank the desirability of the skills on the list, Indeed calculated the average salary for jobs with tech-specific skills posted in 2023. They then calculated the mean salary for jobs lacking those same tech-specific skills, and tallied the difference to determine the change in earning potential per skill.

Understanding generative AI topped Indeed's list as the most desired and lucrative skill, with an average annual salary of $174,564 and an uptick in shared interest from both job seekers and employers. Generative AI powers programs like ChatGPT and other artificial intelligence capable of generating text, images or other data. Searches for generative AI jobs on Indeed have surged nearly 4,000% in the last year, according to Indeed, indicating a pronounced industry shift.

Also on the list are computer science fields like computer vision, which involves teaching computers how to identify people and objects in photos or videos, as well as aptitude on AI programs such as Elixir, which allows engineers to build specific applications.

If this seems daunting for those not well-versed in tech-speak, McMahon stresses this can all be learned. Employers should also play a role in upskilling their current workforce to stay up to speed.

"For those already working full-time, some effective methods for learning these tech skills include enrolling in online courses, attending boot camps, or participating in other training programs tailored to AI development," McMahon said. "Continuous learning and staying abreast of the latest advancements in AI are essential for success in this rapidly evolving field."

See what other AI skills are in high demand and could help employees bolster their paychecks:

Generative AI

Skill description: Generative artificial intelligence is artificial intelligence capable of generating text, images or other data using generative models, often in response to prompts.
Average salary potential: $174,727

SoC

Skill description: System-on-chip is an integrated circuit that integrates most or all components of a computer or other electronic system.
Average salary potential: $174,564

Deep learning

Skill description: Deep learning is a machine learning technique that teaches computers to do what comes naturally to humans: Learn by example. Deep learning models can recognize complex patterns in pictures, text, sounds and other data to produce accurate insights and predictions.
Average salary potential: $170,939

Torch

Skill description: Torch is an open-source machine learning library, an important tool for building and deploying machine learning models, and a script language based specifically on the Lua programming language.
Average salary potential: $169,874

PyTorch

Skill description: PyTorch is another machine learning framework based on the previously mentioned Torch library, based on the Python programming language, a more common coding language, making it relatively easy for most machine learning developers to learn and use.
Average salary potential: $168,636

Computer vision

Skill description: Computer vision is a field of computer science that focuses on programming computers to be able to identify and understand objects and people in images and videos.
Average salary potential: $168,636

SystemVerilog

Skill description: SystemVerilog is a hardware description and hardware verification language that enables software engineers to model, design, simulate, test and implement electronic systems.
Average salary potential: $165,832

Mesos

Skill description: Apache Mesos is a platform that allows effective resource sharing between applications like CPU, memory and storage.
Average salary potential: $165,788

Rust

Skill description: Rust is a multi-paradigm and general-purpose computer programming language that's easy to use and enables everyone to build reliable and efficient software.
Average salary potential: $165,637

Elixir

Skill description: Elixir is another dynamic, functional language for building scalable and maintainable applications.
Average salary potential: $165,245