Just 16% of Indian IT professionals have AI skills: Report
What's the story
A recent report by TeamLease Digital has revealed that only one in six Indian IT professionals possesses artificial intelligence (AI) skills. The study analyzed 37,000 technology and digital roles across global capability centers (GCCs), tech firms, and core industries. It shows that while nearly two million professionals have been upskilled, only around 300,000 have advanced AI skills.
Skill disparity
Distinction between AI training and skills
The report highlights a major gap between being trained to use AI tools and having the skills required to build, deploy, and manage AI systems in businesses.
TeamLease Digital CEO Neeti Sharma told Moneycontrol that "AI is changing what it means to be capable."
She added that using AI tools is becoming a baseline skill while the market increasingly rewards those who can build, run, and govern AI in production.
Workforce categorization
New classifications for technology workforce
TeamLease has classified the technology workforce into three categories: AI-Core, AI-Adjacent, and AI-Support.
AI-Core roles include GenAI and ML engineers who build intelligent systems, while AI-Adjacent roles are data, cloud, and cybersecurity professionals integrating AI into workflows.
Meanwhile, AI-Support roles cover monitoring, validation around these systems.
This distinction is becoming increasingly important for hiring and pay in the industry.
Salary trends
Salary trends for different AI roles
AI-Core roles in GCCs have a median entry-level fixed pay of ₹13.2 lakh, much higher than the ₹9-10.2 lakh for AI-Adjacent roles and ₹4.8-5.4 lakh for AI-Support roles.
The report predicts that these core roles will grow by 16-21% in FY27-28, compared to 13-18% for adjacent ones and 7-8% for support positions.
This trend indicates a growing demand for advanced AI skills in the industry.
Salary comparison
Skill mix more important than tenure
In tech firms, a GenAI developer with 0-2 years of experience earns a median salary of ₹11.2 lakh, which can go up to ₹34.5 lakh at six-eight years.
On the other hand, a technical support engineer's salary ranges from ₹5.2 lakh to ₹14.6 lakh across the same experience bands.
The report highlights that skill mix is becoming more important than tenure when it comes to determining salaries in these roles.
Job market impact
Compression of entry layer in technology firms
The shortage of advanced AI talent is emerging with a squeeze on some routine technology jobs.
Of the 16 premium roles identified across AI, data, cloud and platform, and cybersecurity, four are AI-Core while 12 are AI-Adjacent. None is an AI-Support role.
This indicates that the entry layer of technology firms is compressing rather than simply being repriced, creating an uneven technology jobs market.