AI technology concept. 3D render
| Photo Credit: BlackJack3D
Generative AI is rewriting the tech career playbook. Programming, once the gold standard for high-paying jobs, is now viewed as a secondary skill that is ‘less essential’ to the future workforce. Because learning AI is more accessible to beginners, the disruption to traditional coding has multiplied. With AI/ML roles commanding significantly higher salaries than standard development jobs, the industry’s transition is only gathering speed. The above conclusions are based on the World Economic Forum’s “New Economy Skills: Building AI, Data and Digital Capabilities for Growth”.
Chart 1: Skill evolution, 2025–2030
Between 2025 and 2030, the global skill set is undergoing a radical shift. While once-dominant skills like programming, mathematics, and teaching are receding in importance, ‘AI & Big Data’ and ‘Creative Thinking’ are taking centre stage as core requirements for the future. Amidst this change, technology literacy— defined as the ability to adapt digital tools to solve real-world problems — remains a critical asset for the modern workforce.
Chart 2: Average learning hours
With AI and Big Data requiring fewer than half the learning hours of programming to reach beginner proficiency, the tech landscape is shifting rapidly. This transition is being driven by young challengers who are entering the field thick and fast, leveraging their agility to master new tools far more quickly than the established workforce. The chart shows the average learning hours needed to achieve various proficiency levels.
Chart 3: Total learning hours
The chart shows the hours spent learning AI and Big Data and programming in Courseera, 2020-2025. While AI and Big Data skills can be acquired in half the time it takes to learn programming, Coursera’s 2025 data reveals an interesting trend: the total hours spent on AI-related learning is six times higher than for programming. This explosive growth signals an enormous shift in the workforce, as millions of learners pivot toward AI to future-proof their careers.
Chart 4: AI vs GenAI
Within the broader field of AI, Gen AI-specific learning has seen explosive growth. Following an initial surge during the COVID-19 pandemic, interest in AI competencies accelerated sharply starting in early 2022. The emergence of Gen AI introduced a distinct shift in the global talent landscape: while core AI skills continued their steady expansion, demand for Gen AI skyrocketed following the release of ChatGPT.
Chart 5: Skill transformation capacity
The chart shows the capacity of GenAI to transform a given skill as a share of all granular skills within each skill group. An analysis of 2,900 Indeed skills (July 2025) via GPT-4.1 and Claude 4 reveals that programming skills are most ripe for transformation as GenAI automates routine tasks. Conversely, technology literacy remains largely shielded, as it relies on human judgment and adaptation. This divergence necessitates building advanced AI expertise to manage systems while fostering broad digital fluency to apply those tools to real-world challenges.
Chart 6: Median wages (2019–2025)
The chart shows the seven-month moving average of average wages across various skill levels. While median salaries for all digital roles have trended upwards since 2019, AI/ML wages saw a breakout surge starting in 2023. In comparison, data and programming salaries have seen only modest growth.
Published – January 01, 2026 07:00 am IST