AI's 'Most Wanted': Which Skills Are Adopters Most Urgently Seeking?

Most early adopters face AI skill gaps and are looking for expertise to boost their capabilities. According to Deloitte's global study of AI early adopters, 68 percent report a moderate-to-extreme AI skills gap.1 What are the "most wanted" roles to fill these gaps? According to AI early adopters, the top four most-needed positions are "AI builders" who are involved in creating AI solutions: Beyond these AI builders, adopters are seeking "AI translators" who bridge the divide between the business and technical staff--both at the front and back end of building AI solutions: When we compare companies with relatively little AI experience (they've built five or fewer production systems) with those possessing extensive AI experience (they've built 20 or more production systems), we observe an interesting shift in "most wanted" roles (see chart). Early on, AI researchers are the most sought-after, with about a third of the less-experienced rating them a top-two needed role. Business leaders rank near the bottom.