Naukri Report Shows 17-Fold Surge in India AI Job Demand

A new report from Naukri indicates a substantial increase in the demand for artificial intelligence skills within the Indian job market. According to the World AI Day Report 2026, AI-related requirements now appear in 15.4% of technology job descriptions, representing a nearly 17-fold increase from 0.9% in 2020. This trend extends to non-technology sectors, where mentions of AI skills grew nearly six-fold, rising from 0.26% to 1.59% over the same period.

Based on an analysis of over 3 lakh job descriptions and data from 27,000 professionals, the report finds that workers with AI skills earn higher median salaries and experience stronger salary growth. Hiring is most rapid among experienced professionals with 13 to 16 or more years of experience, especially those in salary brackets of Rs 40 lakh and above. The highest concentration of AI usage is found in Product Management, Data Science and Analytics, and Engineering, Software and QA functions.

Sumeet Singh, Group CMO of Info Edge (India) Ltd, noted that AI is already reshaping how India works and is influencing hiring patterns, job descriptions, and career decisions.