AI talent demand far exceeds supply, enterprises urgently need internal skills development
According to a report released by Indeed on Tuesday, nearly six in ten employers require AI application skills in their hiring, yet the supply of qualified candidates in the labor market is severely insufficient. The survey, covering 1,001 job seekers and 300 employers, found that only 14% of workers consider themselves "AI natives." Kyle M.K., a senior talent strategy advisor at Indeed, noted that simply expanding recruitment cannot solve the problem, and companies should focus on internal skills development. Meanwhile, Gartner forecasts that global IT spending will exceed $6.3 trillion this year, but the AI skills gap still constrains technology implementation.
Briefing at a Glance
- According to Indeed, released on Tuesday,a reportnearly 6 in 10 employers are seeking workers who can leverage AI to produce results, but the supply of such talent is clearly insufficient. The job site commissioned a study surveying 1,001 job seekers and 300 employers.
- Only 14% of employees call themselves "AI natives," highlighting the scarcity of a workforce with sufficient technical knowledge to complete work tasks and processes.
- Indeed believes the gap between supply and demand can be bridged through training. Among all employees, fewer than half say they have received the AI training they need, while more than three-quarters of "AI natives" say they have received such training.
Deep Insights
Hyperscale cloud providers have invested billions of dollars in data centers and infrastructure to support the computing power needed for AI applications, but enterprise customers still face significant challenges in scaling AI applications and developing relevant skills.
Data centers and infrastructure are driving global IT spending growth. According toGartner'sforecast, global IT spending this year willexceed $6.3 trillion. Meanwhile, corporate investment in AI tools and computing power often lags behind the skills needed to turn AI investments into practical applications.
Kyle M.K., a senior talent strategy advisor at Indeed, said that simply expanding recruitment cannot solve this gap, as the external supply of employees with AI skills is insufficient to meet demand.
"For technology leaders, it is more useful to cultivate these skills within the existing organization rather than purely viewing it as a hiring problem," he said.
In the absence of widespread formal AI training, most employees are relying on self-study to improve their familiarity with the technology.
"They are motivated, but not all places have the corresponding training systems," M.K. said. "Currently, only 32% of employees say they have actually received the appropriate training needed for their current roles, so most of the progress made today depends on individual initiative to learn."
In fact, according toCompTIA data, business-related tasks account for only a quarter of professionals' total AI usage. The remaining usage is related to personal tasks, thanks to the popularity of tools like ChatGPT.
Beyond the skills shortage, leaders also need to address trust issues among employees. In the Indeed survey, a quarter of employees said concerns about AI accuracy, ethics, and privacy are the primary barriers preventing them from becoming more familiar with AI.
"People are not avoiding these tools out of stubbornness," M.K. said. "They avoid them because they are unclear about how the tools are used or where their outputs go."