As automation changes the way people live and work every day, jobs in artificial intelligence are proving to be some of the biggest career opportunities of our time.
LinkedIn's 2020 Emerging Jobs Report names artificial intelligence specialist as the job that saw the most growth in the the past five years. The career site looked at each job's growth rate in hiring every year, averaged over the past five years, to determine the emerging jobs list.
For example, hiring growth for AI specialists, which pays a national average of $136,000 per year according to LinkedIn salary data, has grown 74% each year, on average, since 2015. These jobs are primarily concentrated in the San Francisco Bay Area, New York City, Boston, Seattle and Los Angeles.
Artificial intelligence is a subset of automation and refers to machines learning to use judgment and logic to complete tasks that require planning, reasoning, problem-solving and predicting.
While AI specialists tend to work in the tech industry, the report notes that many also work in higher education. One reason why: There is a so-called tech talent shortage in the U.S., so schools may be seeking out more AI experts to teach these skills.
Workers also have been trying to learn AI skills online, leading to fast growth in the multibillion-dollar e-learning industry. As a result, online learning platforms may have also hired AI experts to teach their students.
"At this stage, most of the workforce doesn't work in the emerging field of artificial intelligence, but that doesn't mean it won't impact everyone," Guy Berger, LinkedIn's principal economist, says in the report. "Artificial intelligence will require the entire workforce to learn new skills, whether it's to keep up to date with an existing role, or pursuing a new career as a result of automation."
Here are the top 15 emerging jobs of 2020, what they pay and where the most jobs are, according to LinkedIn.
15. Product owner
Average annual growth rate since 2015: 24%
Average pay: $100,000 per year
Where the jobs are: New York, Boston, San Francisco Bay Area, Chicago, Atlanta
Top industries hiring for this role: Information technology and services, financial services, computer software, insurance, hospitals and health care
14. JavaScript developer
Average annual growth rate since 2015: 25%
Average pay: $83,000 per year
Where the jobs are: New York, San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles, Boston, Washington, D.C.
Top industries hiring for this role: Computer software, information technology and services, internet, financial services, marketing and advertising
13. Cloud engineer
Average annual growth rate since 2015: 27%
Average pay: $100,000 per year
Where the jobs are: San Francisco Bay Area, Washington, D.C., New York, Dallas-Fort Worth, Chicago
Top industries hiring for this role: Information technology and services, computer software, financial services, internet, telecommunications
12. Chief revenue officer
Average annual growth rate since 2015: 28%
Average pay: $330,000 per year
Where the jobs are: New York, San Francisco Bay Area, Atlanta, Boston, Chicago
Top industries hiring for this role: Computer software, information technology and services, marketing and advertising, internet, financial services
11. Back end developer
Average annual growth rate since 2015: 30%
Average pay: $88,000 per year
Where the jobs are: San Francisco Bay Area, New York, Los Angeles, Boston, Seattle
Top industries hiring for this role: Computer software, internet, information technology and services, marketing and advertising, financial services
10. Cybersecurity specialist
Average annual growth rate since 2015: 30%
Average pay: $103,000 per year
Where the jobs are: Washington, D.C., New York, San Francisco Bay Area, Chicago, Denver
Top industries hiring for this role: Information technology and services, defense and space, computer network and security, management consulting, financial services
9. Behavioral health technician
Average annual growth rate since 2015: 32%
Average pay: $33,000 per year
Where the jobs are: Miami-Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, San Francisco Bay Area, Phoenix, Seattle
Top industries hiring for this role: Mental health care, hospital and health care, individual and family services, education management, health, wellness and fitness
8. Data engineer
Average annual growth rate since 2015: 33%
Average pay: $100,000 per year
Where the jobs are: San Francisco Bay Area, New York, Seattle, Boston, Chicago
Top industries hiring for this role: Information technology and services, internet, computer software, financial services, hospital and health care
7. Sales development representative
Average annual growth rate since 2015: 34%
Average pay: $60,000 per year
Where the jobs are: San Francisco Bay Area, New York, Boston, Chicago, Austin
Top industries hiring for this role: Computer software, internet, information technology and services, marketing and advertising, computer and network security
6. Customer success specialist
Average annual growth rate since 2015: 34%
Average pay: $90,000 per year
Where the jobs are: San Francisco Bay Area, New York, Boston, Chicago, Washington, D.C.
Top industries hiring for this role: Computer software, internet, information technology and services, marketing and advertising, financial services
5. Site reliability engineer
Average annual growth rate since 2015: 34%
Average pay: $130,000 per year
Where the jobs are: San Francisco Bay Area, New York, Seattle, Boston, Washington, D.C.
Top industries hiring for this role: Internet, computer software, information technology and services, financial services, consumer electronics
4. Full stack engineer
Average annual growth rate since 2015: 35%
Average pay: $82,000 per year
Where the jobs are: San Francisco Bay Area, New York, Los Angeles, Boston, Washington, D.C.
Top industries hiring for this role: Computer software, information technology and services, internet, financial services, higher education
3. Data scientist
Average annual growth rate since 2015: 37%
Average pay: $143,000 per year
Where the jobs are: San Francisco Bay Area, New York, Washington, D.C., Seattle, Boston
Top industries hiring for this role: Information technology and services, computer software, internet, financial services, higher education
2. Robotics engineer
Average annual growth rate since 2015: 40%
Average pay: $85,000 per year
Where the jobs are: San Francisco Bay Area, Atlanta, New York, Washington, D.C., Boston
Top industries hiring for this role: Information technology and services, industrial automation, computer software, financial services, automotive
1. Artificial intelligence specialist
Average annual growth rate since 2015: 74%
Average pay: $136,000 per year
Where the jobs are: San Francisco Bay Area, New York, Boston, Seattle, Los Angeles
Top industries hiring for this role: Computer software, internet, information technology and services, higher education, consumer electronics
Overall, more than half of the roles on LinkedIn's emerging jobs list are within the technology, engineering and data science spaces. Even those that aren't more traditional tech jobs — like customer success specialist, sales development representative or product owner — are growing in demand because they are needed within technology organizations.
With an average annual salary of $330,000 a year, chief revenue officers are the highest-paid emerging job of 2020. The report notes this is a relatively new type of job "born out of the need to better understand the roles both sales and marketing play in making a company money." While this is a more traditional sales and marketing position, the top industries hiring for this executive role include computer software, information and technology services, internet and financial services, along with marketing and advertising companies.
The one fast-growing job on the list that doesn't fall within tech is No. 9 behavioral health technician, which has likely grown thanks to increased health insurance coverage for mental health and substance abuse treatment in recent years, according to the LinkedIn report. It's also the only job that doesn't require a four-year degree, but rather a certificate or associate's degree, which could encourage professionals from many different educational backgrounds to pursue a career in the field.
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