Beijing Career International Co.,Ltd. released its "Where Are Job Opportunities Flowing in the AI Era? - 2026 AI Talent Market Report" on the evening of September 23. The data reveals that AI-related job postings have surged by approximately 119% from the first half of 2024 to the first half of 2026, with their share of all job openings climbing from 0.72% to 2.01%, nearly tripling over the past three years.

The demand for AI recruitment is expanding across a wider range of business scenarios, from specific roles to entire industries and cities. Previously, AI talent was often associated with algorithm engineers and large model developers. However, the report's data shows a significant shift in the composition of AI job roles. In the first half of 2024, core algorithm positions accounted for 68% of all AI jobs; by the first half of 2026, this proportion had decreased to 45%. During the same period, application roles focused on integrating models into products and business operations, along with associated positions in AI operations, sales, design, and support, collectively represented 55% of all AI jobs.

Algorithm talent remains crucial, with recruitment demand for core algorithm positions still growing by approximately 55% over the past three years. Certain roles have experienced particularly rapid growth: the number of large model application and Agent development positions has surged to nearly 18 times what it was three years ago, while AI product manager roles have grown nearly fourfold. Positions such as AI operations, AI sales and business development, and AI pre-sales and solutions are also on the rise.

AI opportunities are no longer confined to major tech companies and pure-play AI firms. The report indicates that approximately 84% of AI positions come from companies where AI jobs account for less than 30% of their total recruitment. State-owned enterprises have seen faster growth in AI roles compared to foreign-invested companies. In terms of company size, enterprises with fewer than 500 employees contribute 49.3% of AI recruitment demand, nearly half of the total. Among companies with 0 to 500 employees, AI application engineering roles have grown by 418% over three years, AI product management by 358%, and algorithm development by 43%.

An increasing number of traditional industries are adding AI-related positions. Over the past three years, the advertising, media, education, and culture sector has seen AI job growth of 354%, the healthcare sector has grown by 148%, the finance sector by 116%, and the automotive, machinery, and manufacturing sector by 86%. Notably, industry experience has not lost its value in the AI era. Demand for AI roles requiring over ten years of work experience has reached 2.32 times what it was three years ago, and the proportion of positions explicitly requiring industry experience has risen from 4.7% to 7.2%.