Career in AI: Is the job role of AI engineer lucrative?

Michael lyam
4 min readApr 16, 2024

Artificial Intelligence is enabling many technological revolutions. This change has also given rise to a huge demand for a growth-driven career in AI globally.

Career in AI: Is the job role of AI engineer lucrative?

The AI engineers are skilled professionals who work on Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology. They create, test, and apply AI models, along with the handling of algorithms and neural networks of the AI infrastructure. They cruise through traditional software models and various other Machine Learning (ML) models. With the advancement of AI and ML in various industries, the demand for expert AI professionals has risen.

Market valuation experts assigned the global artificial intelligence market a value of USD 39.9 billion in 2019 with a projected Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 42percent from 2020 to 2027.

What are the roles and responsibilities of an AI Engineer?

Based upon their experience, knowledge of the domain they work for, and levels of expertise AI engineers are required to perform certain tasks in general. Those responsibilities include:

  • Study and transform data science prototypes
  • Develop machine learning applications into application program interfaces (APIs) according to requirements so that other applications can use them.
  • Structuring AI models from scratch and managing the product managers and stakeholders of the organization. Explain to them the outcomes they can acquire from the model.
  • Research and apply appropriate ML algorithms and AI applications
  • Build data ingestion and data transformation infrastructure
  • Set up and handle AI development and product infrastructure
  • Stay updated with the latest developments in the field
  • Be a good team player, it is very important to coordinate with others.

Key AI skills needed

If one is aspiring to excel in their career in AI, they need to have certain skills so that you can perform their day-to-day work activities without any hassles. A few important skills that one must possess knowledge about are:

  • Knowledge of the various programming languages, such as Python, R, Java, C++.
  • Statistical knowledge which includes familiarity with concepts of matrices, vectors, and matrix multiplication.
  • Knowledge of various AI algorithms like supervised learning, unsupervised learning, and reinforcement learning.
  • Natural Language Processing (NLP) covering the two core fields of Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence.
  • Deep Learning and neural networks that are useful for complex pattern recognition.

Salaries of AI engineers globally

Globally, an AI engineer job role is considered a most rewarding career path. Here are details of a few countries that pay some amazing salary figures.

  • The salary in Australia can be as high as A$110,000 per year.
  • The average annual salary in Singapore is S$74,943.
  • The entry-level annual average salary in India is around INR 800,000.
  • The per annum salary in Germany is somewhere around €84,574.
  • The annual salary in Canada is over C$85,000 on average.
  • The per annum salary in the U.K. is over 60,000 pounds.
  • Professionals who have more than 10 years of experience can earn up to USD 10,000,000 per annum.

Top firms hiring for AI positions

There are several top and reputed organizations that are hiring expert professionals who want to make a mark in their career. Several professionals are also choosing AI engineer certification to increase their chance of getting hired in a top organization. A few of them are:

  • NVIDIA
  • IBM
  • Microsoft
  • Google
  • Accenture
  • Tempus
  • Nokia
  • Intel
  • SAP
  • AEye
  • AlphaSense

AI jobs by region & state in USA

According to TechRepublic “the states with the greatest number of AI jobs tend to have strong tech, healthcare, or government sectors.” The top U.S. states for AI jobs and their respective cities are the following:

Is AI Engineering a Viable Career?

Though career in AI is an appealing path but there are several perks that one must be aware of before choosing this path.

Benefits of career in AI

High Salaries — A career in AI is financially appealing and offers space to grow in their salaries throughout their career trajectory.

Job Prospects — According to Statista, the AI market revenue is expected to grow from USD 71 billion in 2023 to USD 126 billion in 2025. And many firms like Google, Microsoft, IBM, and Samsung have invested heavily in AI. With this type of growth, the demand for AI engineers will rise as well and one can expect jobs to be present during their career.

Opportunities for Growth — Because of AI’s reputation as a quickly growing and forward-thinking area, opportunities for growth in their career and skillset are quite high. There will be many issues to solve, keeping an individual engaged and driven to learn.

Flexible Workspace — This career is amazing if one wants to perform one’s work with a lot of flexibility because one requires only a computer and an internet connection. They can do most of their work from anywhere like home or office or while traveling too. Many firms have adopted work-from-home (WFH) or hybrid policies to provide more flexibility and satisfaction for their employees.

Conclusion

The job opportunities in AI are ample. By doing the necessary AI engineer certification with a strong educational foundation and technical expertise one can expect to shape their future brilliantly.

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Michael lyam

Writer, AI Engineer, Data Science, and Mentor @LyamMichael