Prateek Tanmay
3 min readNew DelhiJul 18, 2026 06:05 PM IST
Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly becoming a core workplace skill in India, with 77 per cent of professionals now using it at work and workers with AI skills earning higher salaries than their contemporaries, according to Naukri’s World AI Day Report 2026.
The report also found that demand for AI expertise in technology jobs has risen nearly 17 times since 2020, highlighting how rapidly AI is reshaping hiring and careers. It claims that AI-related skills now feature in 15.4 per cent of tech job descriptions, up sharply from 0.9 per cent in 2020. In comparison, mentions of AI skills in non-tech job descriptions have increased by about six-fold, from 0.26 per cent to 1.59 per cent. This shows that AI adoption is spreading beyond traditional tech roles.
The findings are based on a survey of nearly 27,000 professionals across more than 80 industries and 15 Indian cities, along with an analysis of over three lakh job descriptions and hiring data from the popular online recruitment platform.
Despite AI becoming a mainstay in workplaces, the report highlights a gulf between adoption and organisational readiness. While AI use is widespread, only 35 per cent of professionals reported receiving formal AI training from their employers. Another 23 per cent rely on self-learning, while 21 per cent are still waiting for organisational training.
Hiring trend and salary growth
Hiring demand also appears to be leaning towards specialised AI expertise rather than basic AI knowledge. Recruiter searches for Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) skills grew 4.8 times year-on-year, followed by Azure AI (2.9x), Large Language Models (2.4x), AI Solutions (2.1x) and Prompt Engineering (1.6x). There is an uptick in hiring for specialised roles such as AI product managers, AI solution architects, AI platform engineers and AI trainers.
Moreover, professionals with AI skills are also seeing a salary advantage. According to the report, workers possessing AI capabilities earn higher median salaries across both IT and non-IT roles than peers without AI skills, while AI-enabled roles have recorded stronger salary growth over the past four years. The report also shows IT professionals with AI skills earning a median salary of Rs 13.7 lakh, compared to Rs 11.9 lakh for those without AI skills, while non-IT professionals with AI skills earn Rs 11.3 lakh, compared to Rs 7.5 lakh for those without such skills.
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The report also suggests that AI hiring is becoming more senior-focused. Demand grew fastest among professionals with 13 to 16 years of experience, where AI hiring increased 39 per cent year-on-year, followed by those with over 16 years of experience at 35 per cent. Recruiter demand also rose sharply for high-paying roles in the Rs 40-49 lakh and Rs 50 lakh-plus salary brackets, suggesting organisations are prioritising experienced professionals capable of leading AI transformation initiatives.
At the same time, professionals are increasingly taking responsibility for their own AI upskilling. Nearly 79 per cent of respondents said they are already learning AI or plan to start soon, while more than half (52 per cent) of professionals with over 15 years of experience are actively upskilling in AI.
