India has a 14-fold AI skill diffusion rate over time

LinkedIn’s quarterly report on Future of Work Report: AI at Work is designed to help both professionals and business leaders understand what’s happening. The rise of AI talent and members adding AI skills has been accelerating since 2016. With the launch of ChatGPT, we are seeing the promise of AI and how it is reshaping the skills required at work and at the same time helping people become more productive.

An analysis of how AI skills are diffusing across 25 countries shows that the pace at which LinkedIn members added AI skills to their profiles nearly doubled since the launch of ChatGPT, rising from 7.7% (May-November 2022) to 13% (November 2022-June 2023).

The new AI Skills Index offers a unique look at how AI skills are being adopted across geographies and industries. Tracking the speed and direction of AI skills as they spread throughout the global economy gives us a sharper read on how quickly and in what ways we can expect the workplace to transform.

The index shows the speed at which members are adding AI skills to their profiles across industries and countries. For example, a country that has an index of 10 in June 2023, means its share of members with at least two AI skills has grown by 10x since January 2016.

How we define AI skills in LinkedIn’s skills taxonomy

There are 38,000 skills in LinkedIn’s skills taxonomy, of which 121 are considered AI skills, including machine learning, natural language, and deep learning.2

How we define AI talent

Members who are employed in an AI-related job or with at least one AI skill. We’re seeing more LinkedIn members around the globe adding AI skills to their profiles than ever before. Based on AI Skills Index data from 25 countries, by June 2023, the number of AI-skilled members was nine-fold larger than in January 2016.

The index shows that Singapore, Finland, Ireland, India, and Canada are experiencing the fastest rate of AI skills diffusion. We’re also seeing the adoption of AI skills extend beyond tech to a range of industries, including retail, education, financial services, and many others.

According to Karin Kimbrough, Chief Economist, LinkedIn, to realise the full promise of AI productivity gains depends on the diffusion of skills across geographies, industries, and talent. “AI adoption and optimisation of its use will of course take time, but at this early stage, it appears that the pace of diffusion is getting underway. The brightest global economic outcome is one where innovation can scale borders and boost productivity growth for all,” Kimbrough said.

Geographic snapshot

As of June 2023, Singapore has the highest diffusion rate over time (20-fold); in other words, the share of members who have added AI skills to their profiles is 20-fold as compared to January 2016. Finland (16-fold), Ireland (15-fold), India (14-fold), and Canada (13-fold) round out the top five countries with the highest rates of AI skills diffusion.

Industry snapshot

As might be expected, in the US, Technology, Information, and Media have the largest share of AI-skilled members (2.2%); while small, this is still well above other industries like Education (1.2%), Professional Services (0.9%), Financial Services (0.9%), and Manufacturing (0.8%).

However, other industries are quickly catching up. When we look at the speed at which members are adding AI skills to their profiles, we see that professionals in Financial Services (30-fold), Retail (29-fold), and Wholesale (24-fold) are pivoting toward AI faster than in Technology, Information, and Media (11-fold).

Across 10 US industries, Financial Services stands out as the only industry in which the share of members with AI skills and the speed at which they are adding AI skills to their profiles is above that of the average industry. This is an example of how industries beyond Tech have the potential to be not only early adopters but drivers of AI innovation.