China's major tech companies are dramatically expanding artificial intelligence hiring, driving demand up 11-fold in just one year.
AI-related positions surged from 2.29% of job listings last year to 26.23% this year, according to Global Times on Monday. Yet talent supply cannot keep pace with demand despite high salaries. The AI job supply-demand ratio stands at 0.97, well below the economy-wide average of 1.79. Average monthly pay in the AI sector reaches 60,738 yuan (approximately 13.05 million won), 26% higher than other fields.
China's leading tech giants are intensively recruiting AI talent. Ant Group, an Alibaba subsidiary, is filling more than 70% of its spring hiring positions with AI-related roles. Tencent said it is focusing on core areas including large language model algorithms, AI, and AI security. Tencent and ByteDance are also actively hiring AI personnel.
"AI-related jobs are abundant, but the talent pool is severely insufficient," said Chen Changsheng, deputy director of the State Council's Development Research Center. "The supply-to-demand ratio is at 1 to 3.5."
The Chinese government designated AI industry development as a key priority in its 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030), announced this year, and plans to provide AI skills training subsidies to more than 10 million people.
