3 weeks ago
Two-thirds of India's AI and ML workers expect layoffs
A survey asked 1,552 workers in India if they think they might lose their jobs soon.
The survey was done by Blind, an app where professionals talk anonymously.
It found that 66 out of every 100 people who work on artificial intelligence, or AI, expect job cuts in the next three to six months.
People in sales and marketing were even more worried — 68 out of 100 expect cuts.
Surprisingly, engineers felt the safest, with only 24 out of 100 saying a job cut was very likely.
Workers at big companies like Salesforce and Oracle felt most at risk, while workers at Zoho felt safest.
The biggest warning signs workers watched for were hiring freezes and budget cuts, not official layoff announcements.
This is strange because India has about a fifth of the world's AI job postings, yet the people who build AI still feel scared about layoffs.
66% of AI and machine learning workers in India expect a layoff or significant headcount reduction in their team within three to six months, per a Blind survey of 1,552 India-based workers.
Sales and marketing recorded the highest layoff expectations at 68%, followed by AI/ML at 66% and product and design at 65%.
Engineers are the least concerned function: only 24% say a job cut is 'very likely', with overall at-risk sentiment at 58%, below the survey average.
Workers at Salesforce (81%) and Oracle (80%) feel most at risk, while those at Zoho (9%) and Freshworks (44%) feel safest.
Instead of formal layoff announcements (9%), workers cite hiring freezes (27%) and budget or headcount-target cuts (24%) as the strongest warning signals.
- Who
- India-based tech workers surveyed by Blind, an anonymous community app for professionals, including employees at Salesforce, Oracle, Uber, PayPal, Zoho, and Freshworks.
- What
- A Blind survey found that 66% of AI and machine learning workers in India expect layoffs or significant headcount reductions within the next three to six months, while engineers feel the safest.
- Where
- India's technology workforce.
- When
- The survey reflects worker expectations for the next three to six months; the survey period itself is not specified in the articles.
- Why
- Workers are responding to quieter warning signals such as hiring freezes and budget or headcount-target cuts amid rapid AI integration in workforces.
Key facts
- Survey firm
- Blind
- Sample size
- 1,552 India-based workers
- AI/ML workers expecting cuts
- 66%
- Most worried function
- Sales and marketing (68%)
- Least worried function
- Engineers (24% say cut 'very likely')
- Highest-risk company
- Salesforce (81%)
- Lowest-risk company
- Zoho (9%)
- India's share of global AI tech job postings
- 20.5%, second only to the US at 29% (Randstad Digital)
Quotes
Coinbase professional
Employee at Coinbase discussing ML job prospects
“"ML is honestly dead too…The best you can do is augment your current skills for backend AI pipelines. And ride it out as long as you can."”
livemint.com
“"the only safe ML guys are the ones with phd at deep mind."”
livemint.com
Sources
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