New study maps AI talent across the globe

The United States is one of the top destinations for talent working in the field of artificial intelligence, with 75% of the top-tier AI talent being of American and Chinese origin.

A 2023 study of AI talent indicates that most areas worldwide are steadily evolving their AI capabilities, as detailed by Macro Polo’s ‘Global AI Talent Tracker 2.0.’

The Global AI Talent Tracker was launched by the Paulson Institute’s think tank in 2020, and since then, AI has grown exponentially.

Large language models and machine learning methods have become more sophisticated while computational capabilities continue to develop, demonstrating the immense powers of AI.

With the growing trend in AI and the demand for these technologies, the origins of global talent and the best destinations for those working in the field of AI are still being explored.

The Global AI Talent Tracker looks to map one of the most quantifiable inputs – AI talent.

This study shows that the US is the leading country to work in and holds the highest amount of AI talent.

“The United States remains far and away the leading destination for the world’s most elite AI talent (top ~2%) and remains home to 60% of top AI institutions,” the report states

Following the United States and China, the United Kingdom, South Korea, and Continental Europe have elevated their status as top destinations for AI talent.

In contrast, China has seen a swift increase in its domestic AI talent pool due to its need to adapt to the increasing demands of its AI industry.

A similar trend has been observed in India, which produces some of the top AI researchers.

Furthermore, India’s ability to keep this talent continues to grow with time. This is evidenced by an increase in the number (one-fifth) of Indian AI researchers choosing to stay and work in India.

Top-tier talent appears to reside in their home countries, as the study has observed less mobility from 2019 to 2022.

“42% of top-tier AI researchers in 2022 are foreign nationals currently working in a different country, down 13 percentage points from 2019 – meaning that more top-tier talent are staying put in their home countries,” the study found.

The study found 25 institutions for top-tier AI research, including companies like Google and institutions like Stanford University, Tsinghua University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and Carnegie Mellon University.