Since the tech industry is completely focused on artificial intelligence, you won’t be surprised to learn that some of the most in-demand American jobs are focused on AI engineering, consulting, and research.
Major tech companies like OpenAI, Meta, Microsoft and Google are trying to gain market dominance with the right talent. Nevertheless, non-technical businesses as well as small firms and startups are also in need of high-quality AI professionals.
There is also an ongoing search for skilled individuals who can see AI beyond the early adoption and integration and first wave of product launches.
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“Organizations are increasingly combining technical AI roles with human-centered, governance, and operational titles,” Christina Mancini, CEO of Black Girls Code, tells Mashable. Mancini said this shift reflects a move by organizations from simply experimenting with AI to using it intentionally and responsibly.
This trend is evidenced by the rapidly increasing interest in hiring AI consultants and strategists. That role, along with four other tech titles, recently appeared in LinkedIn’s annual roundup of the 25 fastest-growing roles in the country:
1. AI Engineer
According to LinkedIn, the fastest growing role in America? AI Engineer.
There are a variety of applications for artificial intelligence, ranging from powering robotic systems to developing complex algorithms that run generative chatbots. An AI engineer can create models capable of performing the task along with the necessary production infrastructure.
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AI engineers should expect to gain extensive technical knowledge for building AI agents, optimizing large language model outputs, and training neural networks. As LinkedIn notes, they should also have extensive mathematical and statistical skills.
Coursera estimates Based on data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the role has an annual income of $145,080.
2. AI Consultants and Strategists
According to LinkedIn, the second fastest growing position in the US focuses on organizational implementation of AI. Consultants and strategists with core expertise in areas such as computer science and artificial intelligence, as well as business acumen, can be successful in these roles. According to LinkedIn, their job is to help businesses implement AI in ways that make them more efficient and strategic. This may include project management, long-term planning, and the development of ethical and responsible practices.
Self-employed consultants may charge by the hour (upwards of $300) or by the project, According to LinkedIn. While salaries vary, LinkedIn estimates that entry-level consultants can earn between $60,000 and $100,000. According to LinkedIn, people with more experience can earn more than $200,000 per year.
3. Data Interpreter
Building and training machine learning models often requires data annotators, also known as content analysts. Ranked as the fourth growing job by LinkedIn, this role is in high demand as companies rely on data annotators to evaluate metadata or raw data with labels or tags. These annotations provide context to the articles, social media posts, customer reviews, images, and videos used to train AI models, allowing them to communicate more accurately.
While entry-level data annotators can earn $20 per hour, those with AI expertise or experience handling specialized content like medical data can earn $100 to $180 per hour. According to LinkedIn.
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4. Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning Researcher
Along with large-scale financial investments, there has also been a surge in private research roles as institutions expand internal teams dedicated to the advancement of generic AI. Tasked with designing and testing new models, algorithms, and future applications of generative AI, these research positions rank fifth among LinkedIn’s fastest-growing roles in the US.
According to Apple, their AI/ML research team studies the technology, publishes their research, and hosts and participates in conferences on deep learning. Google currently has more than 1,700 job listings For roles in its research teams, including research engineers and scientists dedicated to AI in security and privacy, advertising, search, and machine learning optimization.
According to LinkedIn’s findings, most of these roles are offered in tech hubs: San Francisco, New York City, and now Boston. The gender divide is also fairly stark: 74 percent of positions in this field are held by men, with an average of three years of prior experience. And the average salary is in the six figures, Zip Recruiter puts it at $130,000 per year.
5. Data Center Technician
In 2025, $61 billion That went toward the infrastructure of data centers operating around the world, according to a report by S&P Global. Due to the energy-intensive demands of generative AI, these data centers are funded by an unsustainable model of major tech companies and private equity loans – they are also bureaucratically supported by the federal government, according to an S&P Global report.
Hardware experts also included technicians There is demand for executives tasked with maintaining new facilities and their server networks. These positions require physical and technical skills – they have to set up and maintain servers, organize cable patch plans, and constantly monitor vast networks physically built for people around the world to use. Most employees in these roles were previously in IT or data center operations and career sites like Glassdoor, LinkedIn reports. Average salary around $68,000. Most roles are based in the Washington, DC metro area, Atlanta, and Columbus, Ohio – areas that overlap growing data center hub across America
