Saudi Arabia is a regional leader in the MENA region in breakthrough technology skills such as nanotechnology and materials science
Kingdom sees the influx of AI specialists as the fastest-growing indication of AI skills in the AI generation
Riyad: LinkedIn, the world’s largest professional social network with over 1 billion members worldwide, today releases information on the latest talent trends in Saudi Arabia.
With over 9 million members in the kingdom, LinkedIn’s latest data provides insight into the Saudi workforce undergoing rapid transformation to meet the ambitions of Saudi Vision 2030, while benefiting from the opportunities presented by the development of artificial intelligence.
Saudi Arabia is proving attractive for tech talent in the region
LinkedIn data shows that workers are increasingly adopting digital skills in line with the kingdom’s economic transformation. Key observations include:
- Saudi Arabia ranks first in the MENA region for several breakthrough digital skills such as development tools, materials sciences and nanotechnology. These skills are related to the development of up-to-date technologies that are expected to influence the labor market in the coming years.
- The country ranks second in the MENA region in all digital skills categories at an aggregate level, behind the United Arab Emirates.
- It ranks in the top percentile for applied digital skills, such as animation and computer graphics, in the MENA region and well above the global average in animation.
- Saudi Arabia also ranks above the global average in terms of cybersecurity trends: 3.1% compared to 2.5% globally. Notably, the kingdom continues to catch up with global trends in gender diversity in the industry.
AI skills and talents are growing in the kingdomGenerative artificial intelligence (GAI) is gaining popularity around the world, and in Saudi Arabia, 79% of employees believe that artificial intelligence will significantly change the way they work in the coming year.
KSA is already on track to grow its AI talent pool, doubling its talent pool between 2016 and 2023. This trend also appears to be accelerating, with the ratio of AI talent hiring to overall employment growing 24% year over year.
In terms of AI skills penetration, Saudi Arabia jumped five places last year alone to 30th position (from 35th in 2023). This was partly attributed to the increased migration of AI specialists into the country: LinkedIn data shows that KSA is experiencing a net positive flow of AI talent, ranking 15th globally in attracting AI talent relative to population size, up from 24th last year.
This upward trend is confirmed by up-to-date data showing how AI skills are being implemented across the country. LinkedIn data shows that the fastest-growing AI skills in Saudi Arabia are reinforcement learning, pattern recognition, predictive modeling, supervised learning, PyTorch; all of which support the development of generative artificial intelligence.
Ali Matar, EMEA Growth Markets Leader and Head of LinkedIn MENA, says: “The latest data on labor market trends provides further insight into how Saudi Arabia is transforming into one of the most attractive workplaces in the region on the path to Vision 2030. The insights are, in fact, a nod to the kingdom’s efforts to become a leader in artificial intelligence and data, and signal a growing technology industry that is cultivating a radiant and elastic workforce.”
