The Global Talent Landscape of Generative AI

“In the past five years, AI has made the leap from something that mostly happens in research labs or other highly controlled settings to something that’s out in society affecting people’s lives.” - Michael Littman, chair of the One Hundred Year Study on Artificial Intelligence, hosted at Stanford.

Introduction

There has been enormous growth in the field of Generative AI in the recent months, accompanied by a surge of excitement. This phenomenon can be attributed primarily to the user-friendly interfaces that have emerged, enabling the creation of high-quality text, graphics, and videos within seconds. Over the past few months, significant announcements in Generative AI have been made by big tech companies such as Nvidia, Adobe, Google, and Microsoft. There has been a flurry of activity in the Indian industrial circles as well, with tech start-ups and MNCs rushing to determine use cases and how they can lead the field of Generative AI.

There is no doubt that building an ethical AI will require a diverse workforce that brings a broad range of perspectives. To achieve this, companies need to look beyond the usual hubs such as San Francisco.

With the intention of assisting companies in gaining a broader perspective, we have developed this blog to concentrate on the global talent landscape of Generative AI. By analyzing numerous data points, we have compiled a list of the prime locations where companies engaged in Generative AI are situated. Furthermore, for more comprehensive insights, we have identified the top 10 locations where companies are actively recruiting Generative AI experts at present, along with an understanding of the corresponding salary ranges. Lastly, we have also provided market insights on industry wise adoption of Generative AI talent by analyzing which industries are actively hiring at the moment.

Overview of Overall AI and Generative AI landscape

The following tables illustrate the distribution of companies working in the field of AI across different countries. We have categorized the charts to provide separate insights into the overall AI landscape and the specific landscape of Generative AI.

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Key Insights:

• There are over 29,000 companies in the AI technology sector, but less than 1% of them specialize in Generative AI.
• The USA leads in both traditional AI and Generative AI, with more than 50% of Generative AI companies being headquartered there.
• Approximately 7% of AI companies have a team size of over 100 employees, while most Generative AI companies, having started recently, have less than 10 employees. This also suggests the potential for future scalability as the demand for generative AI grows.

Industry Insights for Generative AI

Our research indicates that more than 250 companies across the globe are actively hiring for Generative AI talent. Below is a split of the industry that these companies belong to:

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Key Insights:

• 55% of the companies are from the technology industry indicating the fast paced development of AI technology.
• An interesting observation is that Consulting companies such Accenture, Deloitte are hiring AI consultants, indicating their focus on providing the services related to Generative AI consulting.
• Sectors such as Retail, Travel, Biotech, E-commerce are yet to see an increase in Generative AI hiring. We definitely foresee it to increase in the coming months.
• The following word cloud illustrates what companies are looking for when hiring for Generative AI talent.

Hotspots of Generative AI

To give you a better idea of the distribution of opportunities, here's a breakdown of the top 10 locations where companies are hiring Generative AI talent at the moment.

We have also found significant variation in the compensation across these locations:

Key Insights:

• Cities in the USA stand out among other regions in terms of providing the most competitive compensation. San Francisco, New York, Mountain View, and Seattle offer the highest salaries and boast the best average compensation among all locations.
• Bangalore holds the third position globally in terms of job openings in Generative AI, indicating the growing attention from companies in this area. However, the compensation offered in Bangalore is comparatively lower than in other locations.
• European cities fall somewhere in the middle, offering favorable compensation packages to employees working in the field of Generative AI.

Salary Insights for Generative AI Talent

Competitive compensation plays a pivotal role in an employee's job search. Consequently, we have compiled salary data from various companies to provide you with an overview of the remuneration offered for hiring Generative AI talent. Please note that this list is only a sample. If you have any further inquiries about compensation details for any specific company, we would be happy to assist you.

Key Emerging Locations for Generative AI Talent

Following are the top 25 locations across the globe arranged in order of the size of their talent pool.

Key Insights:

• While San Francisco leads in AI talent worldwide, there is a wider pool from which to draw. There is a global talent pool that extends well beyond the U.S., including in the developing world. The prime example is Bangalore, India which has the world’s 2nd largest AI talent pool.
• The AI landscape is dynamic, especially in the developing world, and these changes can significantly transform the hotspots list over time. Brazil and India, for example, have cities on this list of 50 and are hiring three times as many AI workers as they were in 2017. This is a rate of growth that matches or exceeds that in the U.S.
• Remote working can help spread AI activity more widely. With the growing acceptance of remote work, there are greater opportunities for cities that have a lower cost of living to become more important players in AI. Cities on our list of AI hotspots that are in the developing world, such as Hyderabad, Bangalore, Jakarta, Lagos, Nairobi, Mexico City, Buenos Aires, and Saõ Paolo, score favorably on cost of living, which could be a powerful draw for diverse talent.

There is no question that companies must extend their searches beyond the “usual” cities, the classic tech hubs in the USA, from which to recruit. The hotspots noted above benefit from promoting their cities as the Generative AI industry widens. 

Bangalore, among all the cities in India, has the potential to spearhead Generative AI. The city has one of the largest talent pools in AI technology globally, showcasing its commitment to fostering an environment conducive to AI-driven advancements. The start-up ecosystem in Bengaluru is another significant strength, fuelling innovation and providing a fertile ground for disruptive ideas to flourish. Start-ups in Bengaluru are at the forefront of harnessing the transformative potential of Generative AI, redefining industries, and driving innovation. This vibrant start-up culture, and a supportive ecosystem, make Bengaluru an ideal hub for cutting-edge Generative AI applications.

About Wisemonk

At Wisemonk, we help global companies streamline their remote hiring processes in India. We understand the complexities of managing talent operations in India, ranging from employee sourcing and onboarding, managing contracts, compliant payroll management and many more. As a young company, we are built on the individual experience of working with multiple Sequoia and YC-backed startups like Mesh.ai, Shipsy.io and many others.

If you have any inquiries regarding the recruitment of Generative AI professionals or would like to learn more about their compensation, we would be pleased to assist you and provide answers.