2026 AI Jobs Barometer: UAE analysis

AI jobs are becoming a measurable part of the UAE labour market. Findings from PwC’s latest AI Jobs Barometer indicate that the UAE now ranks among the fastest-growing AI talent markets globally. This reflects strong momentum in the adoption and embedding of AI capabilities across the economy, outpacing many more mature economies and signalling continued upward potential. 

AI hiring in the UAE has continued to steadily rise in recent years as employers across sectors show a growing demand for AI skills. The number of UAE job postings requiring AI skills increased by around 2,700 from 2024 to 2025.

For the UAE, this is a positive signal. The findings of this report suggest that national investment in AI and digital technology is translating into demand for people who can apply AI in business, operations and public services. The country is not only building AI capability in specialist technology roles but also broadening that capability across the wider economy as it establishes itself as a regional and global hub for AI talent.

The next opportunity is to convert this demand into productivity, higher-value work and a deeper skills base. For leaders, the priority is to understand where AI hiring is accelerating, which roles are changing fastest and how to build the talent pipelines needed for an AI-enabled economy.

About the report

The 2026 AI Jobs Barometer: UAE analysis examines how AI is changing labour demand, skills requirements, wages and occupational exposure in the UAE. 

The report gives business, government and workforce leaders a data-led view of:

• How the UAE compares with other fast-scaling AI talent markets 

• Growth in UAE AI-related job postings and AI hiring intensity from 2021 to 2025 

• Sector-level AI hiring patterns across Technology, Media and Telecoms, Financial Services, Professional Services, Manufacturing, Energy, Consumer Markets and Health Industries

• AI wage premiums in the UAE, including sector differences and how to interpret them

• How AI exposure is linked to changing skill requirements across UAE occupations  
   

Key findings

• The UAE is one of the world’s fastest-growing AI talent markets, ahead of several more mature economies including the US, UK, Germany, and France

• Demand for AI talent has more than tripled, with AI-related job postings increasing from 1.0% in 2021 to 3.2% in 2025

• AI adoption is expanding across every sector. While Technology, Media and Telecommunications (TMT) leads with nearly 10% of job postings requiring AI skills, all sectors recorded growth, demonstrating that AI is becoming embedded across core business functions

• Workforce transformation is accelerating. AI-exposed occupations now require significantly broader skill sets, with the most exposed roles requiring an average of 77 new skills versus 22 in the least exposed roles, highlighting the growing importance of upskilling and reskilling