Whether it’s large IT companies like HCLTech, digital engineering firms like Publicis Sapient, or AI startups such as StaqU, all report the same challenge: the current talent pool cannot keep up with the surging demand. “There just aren’t that many people in the market with AI skills,” Shefali Sharma Garg, chief people officer at Publicis Sapient told TOI. “Our approach is to hire agile talent who can evolve as AI matures. It’s moving fast, and adaptability is key.”
The most sought-after roles include engineers skilled in building, training, and deploying AI models, as well as professionals capable of working alongside intelligent systems to drive business outcomes. As a result, compensation for individuals with specialised AI expertise has spiked. HCLTech reports offering up to four times the standard entry-level salary for freshers with niche AI competencies. “We focus on quality over quantity,” said Ramachandran Sundararajan, chief people officer at HCLTech. “Roughly 15-20% of our campus intake this year will be specialised hires, and we’re happy to expand that if more candidates meet our benchmark.”
At Gurugram-based AI startup StaqU, the recruitment model revolves around hiring young, self-taught engineers – even before they graduate. “We don’t hire based on years of experience,” said Atul Rai, CEO and co-founder. “We evaluate GitHub contributions, community feedback, and research output. Someone with two years of hands-on GitHub work in AI is more valuable to us than someone with two decades in Java.”
Yet, sourcing such talent remains a challenge. Rai highlights a broader issue: India’s limited research infrastructure and funding prevent it from building foundational AI models on par with countries like the US and China. “We’re not building LLMs. We’re building applications on top of them – and for that, we need adaptable AI engineers, not just coders,” he added.
The shortage is also evident at E2E Networks, a cloud-native company empanelled by MeitY. “AI has no fixed curriculum. What’s in demand today didn’t exist two years ago,” said Mohammed Imran, CTO of E2E. “Only two out of 10 candidates clear our AI hiring process.”This trend aligns with wider industry findings. A recent report by Bain & Company shows that AI job postings have increased by 21% annually since 2019, while salaries have gone up by 11%. However, the growth in skilled talent hasn’t matched demand. By 2027, India’s AI sector is expected to create 2.3 million jobs, but only 1.2 million professionals may be available—leaving a gap to be addressed through upskilling and training.(With TOI inputs)