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Tech Race: Pursuit of Top Talent in AI Sphere Among Leading Tech Companies

Companies such as Meta opt for buying AI talent instead of developing in-house expertise. This billion-dollar gamble relies on lucrative salaries to secure tech superiority.

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Competition in AI Development: Pursuit of Top Talent by Tech Giants
Competition in AI Development: Pursuit of Top Talent by Tech Giants

Tech Race: Pursuit of Top Talent in AI Sphere Among Leading Tech Companies

In the dynamic world of technology, the year 2025 presents an unprecedented landscape for Artificial Intelligence (AI) talent. The demand for AI specialists, particularly those with agentic AI skills, has skyrocketed, with job postings surging nearly 985% from 2023 to 2024 (McKinsey 2025 Technology Trends Outlook).

Major tech companies like Meta, Google, and others are locked in a strategic talent war, aggressively spending to secure top AI engineers, Machine Learning specialists, and emerging AI Agent Engineers - experts who build autonomous AI systems beyond traditional machine learning roles. Possessing a stellar AI team has become a key competitive advantage.

However, this intense demand for AI talent has also revealed a critical shortage. Despite a global surge in AI-related job openings (over 85 million open roles needing AI/digital skills according to Gartner and WEF), the supply of qualified talent remains distressingly short. This shortage threatens innovation pace and growth in the AI field overall.

The competition for top AI talent has significant implications for the startup ecosystem. Startups are forced to innovate not only in products but also in talent development and resource leveraging to remain competitive in the evolving AI-driven tech landscape. Some startups are pursuing alternate strategies, such as internally upskilling existing employees on AI tools and efficient use of generative AI technologies, rather than competing head-to-head for scarce top-tier AI talent.

Meanwhile, the traditional tech workforce is also feeling the impact. Companies like Microsoft, Meta, and Intel are laying off thousands of employees, with a particular impact on the need for programmers and software developers. On the flip side, AI literacy is one of the most in-demand skills across all jobs on LinkedIn's platform, and AI engineer is one of the fastest-growing jobs in 15 countries, including the Netherlands, Singapore, UK, and US.

The race for AI talent has extended beyond the tech industry. Microsoft has also acquired Inflection AI's team, and Google has recruited leaders from AI startup Windsurf. Meta is spending lavishly on AI, offering up to $100 million in individual pay packages to lure AI developers. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has been very active in Meta's hiring binge, and the company even invested $14.3 billion for a 49% stake in Scale AI, with 28-year-old Scale AI CEO Alexandr Wang running Meta's new superintelligence division as chief AI officer.

Despite the fierce competition, AI startups are struggling to retain employees due to the competition for top AI talent. Big Tech's investment in AI startups like OpenAI, Anthropic, and Scale AI respectively, further intensifies this competition. Some companies are using AI to screen applications, schedule meetings, do rudimentary interviews, and rank candidates, adding another layer of complexity to the job hunt.

Two and a half years after ChatGPT, the wider potential of AI is still uncertain. However, one thing is clear: the AI talent ecosystem in 2025 is a battleground, where the stakes are high and the competition is intense. AI candidates are using tools to scan the internet for job opportunities and even using AI to write their CVs. As we move forward, it will be interesting to see how this landscape evolves and how both tech companies and jobseekers adapt to the changing landscape.

  1. Artificial Intelligence (AI) specialists, particularly those with agentic AI skills, are in high demand across Europe and the world, as shown by the 985% increase in job postings from 2023 to 2024.
  2. In a world dominated by technology, the competition among major tech companies like Meta, Google, and others for AI engineers, Machine Learning specialists, and AI Agent Engineers is so intense that it can be considered a battleground.
  3. The demand for AI talent transcends the tech industry, with companies like Microsoft and Google acquiring AI-based startups and tech leaders to reinforce their AI capabilities.
  4. The shortage of qualified AI talent is a pressing issue, as the global surge in AI-related job openings (over 85 million open roles) is not being matched by an adequate number of qualified candidates, threatening innovation and growth in the AI field.
  5. The race for AI talent has financially impacted the traditional tech workforce, with companies like Microsoft, Meta, and Intel cutting thousands of jobs for programmers and software developers, while AI literacy is one of the most in-demand skills across all jobs.
  6. As the world of technology evolves, AI candidates are leveraging technology themselves, using tools to scan the internet for job opportunities and even using AI to write their CVs, indicating a merging of AI and its therapy in the job market.

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