Firms rush to recruit chief AI officers amid tech frenzy

The buzz around artificial intelligence has companies scampering to hire top talent in the market to run their AI ops and design future strategy. Job portals and headhunters are currently swamped with requests from top corporations on the lookout for a chief AI officer (CAIO).

Job portals show over 350 openings for AI leadership roles in India and 10 for the role of CAIO, according to Kapil Joshi, deputy CEO, Quess IT Staffing.

A February study by Nasscom and BCG found approximately 70% of technology services companies in India have established such leadership roles.

The likes of audio electronics player Harman International, investment managers Blackrock India, banking and financial services major American Express, jewellery maker Swarovski, audio-visual technology company Dolby Laboratories, Netcom Learning, various IT services companies, and even certain Big Four consulting firms are looking to hire for a range of AI leadership roles such as AI director, AI head, vice president or associate vice president for AI, AI engineering head, practice head of AI, a specialist staffing firm Xpheno told ET.

Globally, companies like professional services multinational Accenture, German software major SAP, Dell Technologies, and consulting firm Deloitte have a chief AI officer.

Srikanth Velamakanni, cofounder and CEO of AI company Fractal Analytics, said having the visibility of C-suite-level AI leadership becomes important as AI grows more powerful. This is also increasingly an expectation of boards, as AI is recognised not just as an enabler but also a potential business disruptor.

“The true number (of openings for CAIO) is likely higher. Many companies might be filling these roles through internal hires or leveraging specialised recruitment channels,” Joshi said. “We expect some companies to begin filling these (AI leadership) roles by the next quarter, with wider adoption happening within the next 18 months.”

“As more companies mature in their AI adoption and the demand for AI talent grows, there will be a greater need for specialised leadership roles like CAIOs,” said Krishna Vij, business head, Teamlease Digital. However, the role is still evolving in India, Vij said.

The CAIO role is pivotal for securing leadership endorsement and spearheading the planning and execution of AI readiness across the enterprise, said Sangeeta Gupta, senior vice president and chief strategy officer at IT industry body Nasscom. “As AI becomes integral to core business operations, organisations are recognizing the need for dedicated AI leadership positions.”

She added that as India’s AI market is projected to expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 25-35% through 2027, the demand for such leaders will naturally increase.

Fractal instituted the CAIO role about a year and a half ago, Velamakanni said. It appointed Ajoy Singh.

“The chief AI officer also has the job of making sure that AI is used responsibly, and you are managing the ethical aspects of it as well as the reputational aspects,” he said. He added that even apart from tech companies, “all the real-world businesses would have to have a chief AI officer or an equivalent role,” as AI becomes as integral as electricity in the next 10-15 years.

Investment management firm Mirae Asset instituted the role in February 2024, appointing Nishant Pradhan. “The appointment of our chief AI officer marks the initial phase of building a comprehensive AI team in India. This team will not only bolster our efforts locally but also collaborate with our teams worldwide to establish a robust AI platform for Mirae Asset,” said Swarup Anand Mohanty, vice chairman and CEO, Mirae Asset Investment Managers.

TVS Motor Group appointed Mahesh Calavai the chief digital and AI officer in January 2022 when its digital and AI transformation journey started. “We began recognising the growing significance of AI in reimagining business flows and models in the mobility industry. As AI becomes an integral part of our everyday lives, we see organisations across industries adopting it as a focus area with dedicated leaders to champion their AI strategies,” Calavai told ET.

“At a point of time, 83% of Fortune 500 companies had chief digital officers or equivalents; we can expect something similar for CAIOs,” said Jaspreet Bindra, founder of AI and digital transformation consulting firm Tech Whisperer UK Ltd.

But it’s not just the chief AI officer - a host of new roles are emerging driven by the expanding AI landscape, Teamlease’s Vij said. These include AI ethics specialists, AI governance policy analysts, AI solution managers, AI learning architects, AI curriculum developers, chatbot developers, learning experience designers, compliance specialists, supply chain optimisation specialists, and robotics engineers.

However, the demand-supply gap for AI talent in India stands at 51%, she added. “This significant gap necessitates the urgent need for skilled AI professionals to meet the growing demands of organisations integrating AI into their operations.”