--- title: "Global AI Talent & Compensation Index 2026: Salaries, Demand & Skills | Alice Labs" description: "Benchmark AI job-posting demand and data-scientist pay across 9+ countries with public statistics, OECD evidence, and 26 reproducible indicators. Updated May 2026." lang: en json-ld: | [ { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/#organization", "name": "Alice Labs", "alternateName": [ "Alice Labs AB", "AliceLabs" ], "legalName": "Alice Labs AB", "identifier": "559443-5470", "foundingLocation": { "@type": "Place", "name": "Stockholm, Sweden" }, "url": "https://alicelabs.ai", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/#logo", "url": "https://alicelabs.ai/images/alice-logo.png", "contentUrl": "https://alicelabs.ai/images/alice-logo.png", "width": 2000, "height": 2027, "caption": "Alice Labs" }, "image": { "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/#logo" }, "description": "Alice Labs är en svensk AI-byrå som hjälper företag implementera AI - från strategi till skalning.", "slogan": "From AI strategy to measurable results.", "foundingDate": "2023", "email": "hej@alicelabs.ai", "telephone": "+46734157476", "address": { "@type": "PostalAddress", "streetAddress": "Hammarbybacken 27", "addressLocality": "Stockholm", "postalCode": "120 30", "addressCountry": "SE" }, "contactPoint": [ { "@type": "ContactPoint", "contactType": "customer service", "email": "hej@alicelabs.ai", "telephone": "+46734157476", "areaServed": [ "SE", "EU" ], "availableLanguage": [ "Swedish", "English" ] } ], "areaServed": [ { "@type": "Country", "name": "Sweden" }, { "@type": "Place", "name": "Europe" } ], "knowsAbout": [ "AI strategy", "AI implementation", "AI agents", "AI automation", "Generative AI", "AI governance", "AI training", "Machine learning", "Large language models", "RAG", "AI consulting", "Digital transformation", "AI search optimization", "LLMO", "AI for enterprise" ], "founder": [ { "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/#linus" }, { "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/#eric" } ], "sameAs": [ "https://www.linkedin.com/company/alicelabsai", "https://www.trustpilot.com/review/alicelabs.ai", "https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q140369570" ] }, { "@type": "Person", "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/#linus", "name": "Linus Ingemarsson", "givenName": "Linus", "familyName": "Ingemarsson", "jobTitle": "Co-Founder", "description": "Co-founder of Alice Labs. Architects AI agent systems and automation in production for clients across financial services, media, and the public sector.", "url": "https://alicelabs.ai/en/linus-ingemarsson", "sameAs": [ "https://www.linkedin.com/in/linus-ingemarsson/", "https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q140369914" ], "knowsAbout": [ "AI agents", "agent orchestration", "AI implementation", "LangGraph", "RAG systems", "AI strategy", "enterprise AI", "AI search optimization", "LLMO", "Nordic AI ecosystem" ], "worksFor": { "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Person", "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/#eric", "name": "Eric Lundberg", "givenName": "Eric", "familyName": "Lundberg", "jobTitle": "Co-Founder", "description": "Co-founder of Alice Labs. Designs AI automation systems and agent workflows that remove repetitive work and make day-to-day operations more reliable.", "url": "https://alicelabs.ai/en/eric-lundberg", "sameAs": [ "https://www.linkedin.com/in/eric-lundberg-3530451bb/", "https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q140369978" ], "knowsAbout": [ "AI automation", "agent workflows", "AI integrations", "process automation", "knowledge systems", "AI engineering", "enterprise AI", "Nordic AI ecosystem" ], "worksFor": { "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Person", "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/#alice", "name": "Alice Holmgren", "givenName": "Alice", "familyName": "Holmgren", "jobTitle": "CEO", "description": "CEO of Alice Labs. Leads strategy and growth across the Nordic AI consulting market.", "url": "https://alicelabs.ai/en/alice-holmgren", "knowsAbout": [ "AI strategy", "AI consulting leadership", "business development", "Nordic AI ecosystem", "enterprise AI adoption", "AI program management" ], "worksFor": { "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/#organization" } }, { "@type": [ "LocalBusiness", "ProfessionalService" ], "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/#localbusiness", "name": "Alice Labs", "description": "AI-konsult i Stockholm. Vi hjälper företag implementera AI - från strategi till skalning. 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Demand is measured via the Indeed Hiring Lab AI Tracker, which publishes daily AI-job-posting shares for nine countries (AU, CA, DE, FR, GB, IE, IT, NL, US), and via OECD's skills-based detection of AI-related online vacancies across 14 countries (<1% of postings, 2019–2022).\n\nCompensation benchmarks prioritize official wage statistics: U.S. BLS reports a median annual wage of $112,590 for data scientists and $133,080 for software developers (May 2024); Canada Job Bank reports CAD 46.15/hour median for data scientists (2023–2024); Singapore MOM's Occupational Wage Survey reports SGD 8,992/month median basic wage (June 2024); UK Skills England reports £49,873/year (data year unstated, Medium confidence).\n\nThe report includes a 26-indicator machine-readable dataset (CSV/JSON), a role taxonomy mapped to ISCO/SOC standards, 15 citation-grade structured claims with confidence scores, and a regulatory layer covering the EU AI Act's high-risk classification of employment AI (Annex III) and the EU Pay Transparency Directive (2023/970).", "datePublished": "2026-04-20", "dateModified": "2026-07-15", "version": "1.4", "author": [ { "@type": "Person", "name": "Linus Ingemarsson", "jobTitle": "Co-Founder, Alice Labs", "url": "https://alicelabs.ai/en/linus-ingemarsson", "worksFor": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "Alice Labs", "url": "https://alicelabs.ai" }, "sameAs": [ "https://alicelabs.ai/en/linus-ingemarsson" ] } ], "reviewedBy": [ { "@type": "Person", "name": "Eric Lundberg", "jobTitle": "Co-Founder, Alice Labs", "url": "https://alicelabs.ai/en/eric-lundberg", "worksFor": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "Alice Labs", "url": "https://alicelabs.ai" }, "sameAs": [ "https://alicelabs.ai/en/eric-lundberg" ] } ], "reviewDate": "2026-07-15", "publisher": { "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/#organization" }, "mainEntityOfPage": "https://alicelabs.ai/reports/global-ai-talent-compensation-index-2026", "keywords": "AI salary by country 2026, AI job postings share, data scientist salary, data scientist salary 2026, AI skills demand, AI workforce OECD, AI hiring trends 2026, AI compensation benchmark, machine learning engineer salary, BLS data scientist median wage, data scientist salary Canada, data scientist salary Singapore, data scientist salary UK, AI job market 2026, Indeed AI Tracker, OECD AI workforce, AI talent shortage 2026, global AI hiring, AI labor market index, ISCO AI occupations, SOC 2020 data scientist, EU AI Act employment, EU AI Act recruitment, EU Pay Transparency Directive, Pay Transparency Directive 2023/970, AI compensation by country, PPP adjusted AI salary, WEF Future of Jobs 2025, AI roles taxonomy, MLOps engineer salary, AI governance roles, AI talent benchmark, AI hiring demand by country, how to benchmark AI compensation, AI hiring trends April 2026, data scientist salary benchmark 2026, AI engineer salary 2026, AI workforce statistics 2026, EU AI Act recruitment compliance, AI talent shortage data, ML engineer compensation, AI HR transformation, responsible AI hiring, AI salary report 2026, global AI talent index, data scientist median salary 2026, AI jobs by country 2026, AI salary benchmark report, salary for AI engineer 2026, AI hiring statistics 2026, Indeed AI hiring tracker 2026, AI labor market report 2026, AI talent acquisition trends, what is the average AI salary, highest paying AI jobs 2026, AI workforce report, data scientist demand 2026, AI skills gap 2026, Singapore data scientist wage, Canada data scientist wage 2026, UK data scientist salary 2026, AI compensation trends, AI hiring outlook 2030, WEF future of jobs AI", "inLanguage": "en", "citation": "Ingemarsson, L. (2026, April 20). Global AI Talent & Compensation Index 2026 (Version 1.1). 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(2019–2022)", "description": "Keyword-based vs skills-based detection produce 5–10× different headlines. Never conflate 'AI mentions in postings' with 'AI jobs' or 'AI workforce share'.", "citation": "OECD: Emerging trends in AI skill demand across 14 OECD countries" }, { "@type": "Claim", "name": "Canada and Ireland lead the Indeed AI Tracker in January 2026", "description": "Smaller economies with high English-language posting share (CA, IE) appear inflated relative to underlying AI workforce; treat as a leading indicator of AI skill diffusion in postings, not a population census.", "citation": "Indeed Hiring Lab AI Tracker (AI_posting.csv)" }, { "@type": "Claim", "name": "U.S. median annual wage for data scientists is $112,590 (May 2024)", "description": "BLS OEWS-derived values are the highest-confidence cross-country anchor. The 3× spread between p10 and p90 confirms wide variance by industry, geography and seniority.", "citation": "U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Outlook Handbook" }, { "@type": "Claim", "name": "U.S. data scientist employment is projected to grow 34% from 2024 to 2034", "description": "Among the fastest-growing major occupations in the U.S. — implies persistent wage pressure, talent gaps, and elevated demand for upskilling pathways and apprenticeship programs.", "citation": "BLS Employment Projections / OOH" }, { "@type": "Claim", "name": "U.S. median annual wage for software developers is $133,080 (May 2024)", "description": "Engineering compensation continues to outpace data-science median in BLS series; ML engineering roles often classified as software developer for wage statistics.", "citation": "BLS OOH — Software Developers, QA Analysts, and Testers" }, { "@type": "Claim", "name": "Canada's national median data scientist wage is CAD 46.15/hour (2023–2024)", "description": "Annualized at 40h/52w = ~CAD 96,000/year base. Hourly cadence makes direct comparison with U.S. annual figures dependent on assumed hours; benefits/equity reported separately.", "citation": "Government of Canada Job Bank (Labour Force Survey-sourced)" }, { "@type": "Claim", "name": "Singapore data scientist median monthly basic wage is SGD 8,992 (June 2024)", "description": "Annualized basic = ~SGD 108,000; excludes bonuses (typically 1–3 months) and CPF. Singapore consistently posts among the highest PPP-adjusted compensation for data scientists globally.", "citation": "Singapore MOM — Occupational Wage Survey 2024" }, { "@type": "Claim", "name": "UK Skills England occupational map reports data scientist median £49,873/year", "description": "Treated as Medium confidence — data year not stated on the page. Significantly below US/SG/CA medians; may reflect UK SOC inclusion of broader statistical roles, lagging data, or genuine pay differential.", "citation": "UK Skills England / Department for Education" }, { "@type": "Claim", "name": "EU AI Act classifies AI in recruitment, candidate evaluation, and worker monitoring as high-risk (Annex III)", "description": "HR-tech vendors and deployers face conformity assessments, data governance, human oversight, and post-market monitoring duties. AI compliance is a new HR procurement criterion.", "citation": "EUR-Lex — EU AI Act" }, { "@type": "Claim", "name": "EU Pay Transparency Directive (2023/970) must be transposed by 2026-06-07", "description": "Materially increases salary-range data availability in EU job postings — and therefore the quality of compensation benchmarking from 2026 onwards.", "citation": "EUR-Lex — Directive (EU) 2023/970" }, { "@type": "Claim", "name": "WEF Future of Jobs 2025 projects 78M net new jobs globally by 2030, with AI/ML specialists among fastest-growing", "description": "Survey-based outlooks and posting-based realities should be triangulated, not substituted. WEF tracks expectations; OECD/Indeed track behavior.", "citation": "World Economic Forum — Future of Jobs Report 2025" }, { "@type": "Claim", "name": "PPP-adjusted comparisons are illustrative only — wage definitions are not harmonized", "description": "Bonuses, benefits, equity, working hours, and population coverage differ across each official series. Use PPP as a sanity check, never as a definitive ranking.", "citation": "Derived from BLS, Job Bank, MOM, Skills England + World Bank ICP PPP" } ] }, { "@type": "Dataset", "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/reports/global-ai-talent-compensation-index-2026#dataset", "name": "Global AI Talent & Compensation Index 2026: Salaries, Demand & Skills - Data Sources", "description": "Data sources and references used in Global AI Talent & Compensation Index 2026: Salaries, Demand & Skills", "creator": { "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/#organization" }, "datePublished": "2026-04-20", "license": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "distribution": [ { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "Scoreboard CSV", "contentUrl": "https://alicelabs.ai/data/scoreboard.csv", "encodingFormat": "text/csv" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "Scoreboard JSON", "contentUrl": "https://alicelabs.ai/data/scoreboard.json", "encodingFormat": "application/json" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "Indeed Hiring Lab AI Tracker (GitHub repository)", "contentUrl": "https://github.com/hiring-lab/ai-tracker", "description": "Methodology + daily AI posting share dataset for 9 countries" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "Indeed Hiring Lab — AI_posting.csv", "contentUrl": "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/hiring-lab/ai-tracker/main/AI_posting.csv", "description": "Raw daily AI posting share series (2019-01-01 onwards)" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "OECD — Demand for AI skills in jobs (Squicciarini & Nachtigall)", "contentUrl": "https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/demand-for-ai-skills-in-jobs_3ed32d94-en.html", "description": "AI skill demand evidence across CA, SG, UK, US (2021)" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "OECD — Emerging trends in AI skill demand across 14 OECD countries", "contentUrl": "https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/emerging-trends-in-ai-skill-demand-across-14-oecd-countries_7c691b9a-en.html", "description": "Skills-based detection: AI vacancies <1% of postings (2019–2022)" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "OECD — AI workforce: supply, demand and characteristics", "contentUrl": "https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/the-supply-demand-and-characteristics-of-the-ai-workforce-across-oecd-countries_bb17314a-en.html", "description": "AI workforce definition (skills × employment)" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "OECD AI — Work, Innovation, Productivity and Skills (WIPS)", "contentUrl": "https://oecd.ai/en/wips", "description": "Human capital and AI policy observatory" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "U.S. BLS — Data Scientists (OOH)", "contentUrl": "https://www.bls.gov/ooh/math/data-scientists.htm", "description": "Median annual wage $112,590 (May 2024); +34% projected growth 2024–2034" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "U.S. BLS — Software Developers (OOH)", "contentUrl": "https://www.bls.gov/ooh/Computer-and-Information-Technology/Software-developers.htm", "description": "Median annual wage $133,080 (May 2024)" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "O*NET — Data Scientists (15-2051.00) Wages", "contentUrl": "https://www.onetonline.org/link/localwages/15-2051.00", "description": "Wage percentiles (BLS-sourced): p10 $63,650; p90 $194,410" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "U.S. BLS — OEWS May 2024 (news release)", "contentUrl": "https://www.bls.gov/news.release/archives/ocwage_04022025.pdf", "description": "Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2024" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "U.S. BLS — Employment Projections", "contentUrl": "https://www.bls.gov/emp/", "description": "2024–2034 employment projections program" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "Government of Canada Job Bank — Data Scientist (national wages)", "contentUrl": "https://www.jobbank.gc.ca/marketreport/wages-occupation/227147/ca", "description": "CAD 30 / 46.15 / 69.74 per hour (low/median/high; 2023–2024)" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "OECD — AI skills and capabilities in Canada", "contentUrl": "https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/ai-skills-and-capabilities-in-canada_87f76682-en.html", "description": "Canada-specific AI skill diffusion analysis" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "Singapore MOM — Occupational Wages Tables 2024", "contentUrl": "https://stats.mom.gov.sg/Pages/Occupational-Wages-Tables2024.aspx", "description": "Landing page for OWS 2024 release (released 2025-08-07)" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "Singapore MOM — OWS Coverage and Methodology 2024 (PDF)", "contentUrl": "https://stats.mom.gov.sg/iMAS_Tables1/Wages/Wages_2024/Coverage-and-Methodology-of-OWS-2024.pdf", "description": "Wage definitions: basic vs gross; coverage (≥25 employees, FT residents)" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "Singapore MOM — OWS Table 4 (XLSX, all industries June 2024)", "contentUrl": "https://stats.mom.gov.sg/iMAS_Tables1/Wages/Wages_2024/mrsd_2024Wages_table4.xlsx", "description": "Data scientist median monthly basic SGD 8,992" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "data.gov.sg — Labour Force in Singapore 2024", "contentUrl": "https://www.data.gov.sg/datasets/d_18796f80964c832e0ef1bd2ed8e78a49/view", "description": "Labour force context for Singapore" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "UK Skills England — Data Scientist Occupational Map (OCC0585)", "contentUrl": "https://occupational-maps.skillsengland.education.gov.uk/maps/occupation/OCC0585", "description": "Median £49,873/year; SOC 2020 sub-unit 2433/04; KSBs" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "ONS — SOC 2020 standard occupational classification", "contentUrl": "https://www.ons.gov.uk/methodology/classificationsandstandards/standardoccupationalclassificationsoc/soc2020", "description": "UK occupational classification framework" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "ONS — Employee earnings in the UK: 2024", "contentUrl": "https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/bulletins/annualsurveyofhoursandearnings/2024", "description": "Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings 2024" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "CSO Ireland — Earnings Analysis 2024 (sector page)", "contentUrl": "https://www.cso.ie/en/releasesandpublications/ep/p-eaads/earningsanalysisusingadministrativedatasources2024/economicsector/", "description": "Median weekly earnings by economic sector (admin data)" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "ILO — ISCO-08 Classification of Occupations (Vol. 1 PDF)", "contentUrl": "https://webapps.ilo.org/ilostat-files/ISCO/newdocs-08-2021/ISCO-08/ISCO-08%20EN%20Vol%201.pdf", "description": "International Standard Classification of Occupations" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "ILO — Methodological issues in online labour market data", "contentUrl": "https://www.ilo.org/publications/methodological-issues-related-use-online-labour-market-data", "description": "Bias and representativeness considerations for online postings" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "DataHub Core Datasets — PPP", "contentUrl": "https://datahub.io/core/ppp", "description": "PPP conversion factors (sourced from World Bank ICP)" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "World Bank API — PPP conversion factor (UK example)", "contentUrl": "https://api.worldbank.org/v2/country/GB/indicator/PA.NUS.PPP?format=json", "description": "World Bank ICP PPP factor (JSON, last updated 2025-12-19)" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "EUR-Lex — EU AI Act (Regulation 2024/1689)", "contentUrl": "https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/1689/oj/eng", "description": "Annex III classifies recruitment/selection AI as high-risk" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "European Commission — AI Act Service Desk: Annex III", "contentUrl": "https://ai-act-service-desk.ec.europa.eu/en/ai-act/annex-3", "description": "Employment-related high-risk AI classifications" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "EUR-Lex — Pay Transparency Directive (2023/970)", "contentUrl": "https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2023/970/oj/eng", "description": "Transposition deadline 2026-06-07; salary range disclosure pre-employment" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "Colorado DLE — Equal Pay for Equal Work Act", "contentUrl": "https://cdle.colorado.gov/dlss/labor-laws-by-topic/equal-pay-for-equal-work-act", "description": "Colorado salary range disclosure law (2021)" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "NYC Council — Local Law 32 of 2022 (text)", "contentUrl": "https://intro.nyc/local-laws/2022-32", "description": "NYC pay transparency law text" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "NYC Council — Salary Transparency (compliance page)", "contentUrl": "https://council.nyc.gov/data/salary-transparency/", "description": "NYC salary transparency enforcement and compliance" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "WEF — Future of Jobs Report 2025", "contentUrl": "https://www.weforum.org/publications/the-future-of-jobs-report-2025/", "description": "Employer-survey based; AI/ML specialists among fastest-growing" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "WEF — Press release (78M net new jobs by 2030)", "contentUrl": "https://www.weforum.org/press/2025/01/future-of-jobs-report-2025-78-million-new-job-opportunities-by-2030-but-urgent-upskilling-needed-to-prepare-workforces/", "description": "Headline projection: 78M net new jobs; 22% disruption" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "WEF — Fastest-growing and declining jobs", "contentUrl": "https://www.weforum.org/stories/2025/01/future-of-jobs-report-2025-the-fastest-growing-and-declining-jobs/", "description": "AI/ML specialists ranked among fastest-growing roles" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "Pew Research — Methodology for O*NET analysis (AI and jobs)", "contentUrl": "https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2023/07/26/2023-ai-and-jobs-methodology-for-onet-analysis/", "description": "Methodology reference for AI exposure analysis" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "ILO — ISCO website (overview)", "contentUrl": "https://isco.ilo.org/", "description": "International standard classification context" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "Alice Labs — Talent & Compensation Scoreboard (CSV)", "contentUrl": "https://alicelabs.ai/data/talent-scoreboard.csv", "description": "Machine-readable dataset (26 indicators) accompanying this report" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "name": "Alice Labs — Talent & Compensation Scoreboard (JSON)", "contentUrl": "https://alicelabs.ai/data/talent-scoreboard.json", "description": "Machine-readable dataset (JSON), CC BY 4.0" } ] }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://alicelabs.ai/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Reports", "item": "https://alicelabs.ai/reports" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Global AI Talent & Compensation Index 2026: Salaries, Demand & Skills", "item": "https://alicelabs.ai/reports/global-ai-talent-compensation-index-2026" } ] }, { "@type": "FAQPage", "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/reports/global-ai-talent-compensation-index-2026#faq", "mainEntity": [ { "@type": "Question", "name": "What is the median salary for a data scientist in 2026?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "U.S. BLS reports a median annual wage of $112,590 for data scientists (May 2024 OEWS, published in the 2024–34 OOH cycle). The 10th–90th percentile range is $63,650–$194,410. Canada's national median is CAD 46.15/hour (~CAD 96,000/year base). Singapore's median monthly basic wage is SGD 8,992 (June 2024, ~SGD 108,000/year base, excluding bonuses)." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Which country has the highest AI job-posting share?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Per the Indeed Hiring Lab AI Tracker (latest snapshot 2026-01-31), Canada leads at 12.6%, followed by Ireland at 12.0%, the UK at 7.0%, Australia at 5.8%, and the US at 4.7%. These are keyword-based posting shares, not workforce shares — OECD's skills-based detection finds AI-related vacancies are <1% of postings across 14 countries." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Are AI jobs really more than 10% of all jobs?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "It depends on the definition. Keyword-based posting shares (Indeed) reach 12.6% in Canada and 12.0% in Ireland. Skills-based detection (OECD, 14 countries, 2019–2022) finds AI-related vacancies remained <1% of postings. The OECD AI workforce concept (workers with statistics, CS and ML skills) is yet another construct. All three measure different things." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "How much do machine learning engineers earn in the US?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "ML engineers are typically classified as software developers in BLS statistics, with a May 2024 median annual wage of $133,080. Specialized ML/AI engineering roles at frontier AI companies often command total compensation 2–4× the BLS software developer median, but those figures come from private aggregators, not official statistics." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What does the EU AI Act mean for AI hiring tools?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "EU AI Act Annex III classifies AI systems used in recruitment, candidate selection, performance evaluation, and worker monitoring as high-risk. Providers and deployers must meet conformity assessment, data governance, human oversight, transparency, accuracy, and post-market monitoring obligations. General application is 2026-08-02." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "When does the EU Pay Transparency Directive take effect?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Directive (EU) 2023/970 (OJ 2023-05-17) must be transposed into EU member state law by 2026-06-07. It requires pre-employment salary range disclosure, prohibits asking candidates about pay history, and introduces gender pay gap reporting at 100+ employees." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "How do I benchmark AI compensation across countries?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Start with official wage statistics (US BLS, Canada Job Bank, Singapore MOM, UK ONS/Skills England). Document what each measure includes (basic vs gross; hourly vs monthly vs annual; bonuses included or excluded; full-time only or all). Use PPP conversions only as illustrative sanity checks — never as a definitive ranking, since wage concepts and population coverage differ." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Is the AI talent shortage real in 2026?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Yes — converging evidence: BLS projects 34% data scientist employment growth 2024–2034 (US); WEF Future of Jobs 2025 lists AI/ML specialists among fastest-growing roles globally; OECD reports increasing demand for bundled AI skills. The shortage manifests as wage pressure, long fill times, and growing demand for upskilling pathways." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What roles count as 'AI talent'?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "AI talent spans seven role families: AI research & modeling (research scientists), ML engineering & deployment (ML engineers, MLOps), data science & analytics (data scientists, analysts), data engineering & platforms (data engineers), AI product & operations (AI PMs), AI governance & risk (compliance leads, model risk managers), and AI-augmented domain roles (AI-enabled marketers, clinicians, lawyers)." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "How often is this report updated?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Quarterly updates for Indeed AI Tracker demand metrics (new months appended to the dataset). Annual refresh of wage benchmarks aligned with official release cycles: BLS OEWS/OOH (typically April), Canada Job Bank wage profile refreshes, Singapore MOM Occupational Wage Survey (typically August). Each release is versioned (v1.1 → v1.3) with documented changes. Last reviewed 2026-06-26." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What does the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook project for software developers 2024–2034?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Per the BLS OOH 2024–34 cycle (Software Developers, Quality Assurance Analysts, and Testers, SOC 15-1252), employment is projected to grow 17% from 2024 to 2034 — much faster than the average for all occupations. May 2024 median annual wage: $133,080. About 327,900 openings are projected each year on average over the decade, many resulting from the need to replace workers who transfer occupations or exit the labor force. Source: bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/software-developers.htm." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What does the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook project for computer and information research scientists 2024–2034?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Per the BLS OOH 2024–34 cycle (Computer and Information Research Scientists, SOC 15-1221), employment is projected to grow 26% from 2024 to 2034 — much faster than the average for all occupations. May 2024 median annual wage: $140,910. Demand is driven by AI/ML research, cybersecurity, and scientific-computing applications. This is the SOC bucket where 'applied scientist' and 'AI research scientist' roles are most commonly captured in US official statistics. Source: bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/computer-and-information-research-scientists.htm." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What does the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook project for data scientists 2024–2034?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Per the BLS OOH 2024–34 cycle (Data Scientists, SOC 15-2051), employment is projected to grow 34% from 2024 to 2034 — among the fastest-growing major occupations in the United States. May 2024 median annual wage: $112,590 (10th–90th percentile: $63,650–$194,410 per BLS via O*NET). About 20,800 openings are projected each year on average over the decade. Source: bls.gov/ooh/math/data-scientists.htm." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What is the average AI consultant hourly rate in 2026?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "No official statistical agency publishes 'AI consultant' as a separate occupation. Triangulating: BLS Management Analysts (SOC 13-1111, May 2024 median annual wage $99,410, ≈$48/hour at 40h × 52w) is the closest official anchor. Independent AI consultant rates in industry surveys commonly span $100–$400/hour for senior practitioners, with frontier-firm contractors regularly clearing $500+/hour. Caveat: hourly figures from private aggregators are not directly comparable to BLS occupational wage statistics, which exclude self-employed and contract workers. For organizations procuring AI consulting, document the deliverable, scope, and inclusion of equity/IP transfer in any benchmark." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Is there a measurable AI skills wage premium in 2025–2026?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Yes — and it is rising. OECD evidence (Squicciarini & Nachtigall) documented AI-skilled roles commanding wage premia as early as 2021. PwC's 2025 AI Jobs Barometer, analyzing 800M+ job postings across six countries, reported AI-skilled workers earn a 56% wage premium over non-AI peers in the same occupation — up from 25% in their 2024 edition. Stanford HAI's AI Index 2025 corroborates persistent and rising premia for ML/AI skills, with the largest premia in finance, professional services, and IT. Limitation: posting-based premia exclude equity and bonuses, which dominate frontier-AI total comp." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "BLS software developers outlook 2024 2034 — what does the official BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook project?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Per the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook 2024–34 cycle (Software Developers, Quality Assurance Analysts, and Testers, SOC 15-1252), employment is projected to grow 17% from 2024 to 2034 — much faster than the average for all occupations. May 2024 median annual wage: $133,080. About 327,900 openings are projected each year on average over the decade, many resulting from the need to replace workers who transfer occupations or exit the labor force. Source: bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/software-developers.htm." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "BLS occupational outlook handbook software developers projected growth 2024 2034 — exact figure?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "+17% (much faster than average). This is the BLS Employment Projections figure for SOC 15-1252 (Software Developers, QA Analysts, and Testers) covering the 2024–2034 decade, published in the OOH 2024–34 cycle alongside the May 2024 median wage of $133,080." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "BLS software developers median annual wage 2024 / median pay 2024 — what is the figure?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "$133,080 (May 2024 OEWS median annual wage for SOC 15-1252). This is the median across all software developers, QA analysts, and testers employed in covered industries. The May 2023 prior-year median was $132,270, indicating very modest nominal growth at the median year-over-year." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "BLS computer and information research scientists outlook 2024 2034 / median pay 2024?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Per BLS OOH 2024–34 (SOC 15-1221, Computer and Information Research Scientists): employment projected to grow 26% from 2024 to 2034 — much faster than average. May 2024 median annual wage: $140,910. This is the SOC bucket where AI research scientist, applied scientist, and ML research engineer roles are most commonly captured in U.S. official statistics." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "BLS data scientists outlook 2024 2034 official — what is the projection?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Per BLS OOH 2024–34 (SOC 15-2051, Data Scientists): employment projected to grow 34% from 2024 to 2034 — among the fastest-growing major occupations. May 2024 median annual wage: $112,590 (10th–90th percentile $63,650–$194,410 per BLS via O*NET). About 20,800 openings projected each year on average over the decade. Source: bls.gov/ooh/math/data-scientists.htm." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "BLS compliance officers occupational outlook 2024 2034 — relevant to AI compliance roles?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Per BLS OOH 2024–34 (SOC 13-1041, Compliance Officers): May 2024 median annual wage $76,980, with about +3% projected growth from 2024 to 2034 (slower than average). The general compliance officer category is broad — the AI-compliance sub-segment is growing materially faster (driven by EU AI Act and NIST AI RMF adoption), with AI compliance roles typically commanding $110k–$180k base in 2026." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "BLS network and computer systems administrators job outlook 2024 2034 official?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Per BLS OOH 2024–34 (SOC 15-1244, Network and Computer Systems Administrators): May 2024 median annual wage $96,800, with about +1% projected growth from 2024 to 2034 (little or no change) — automation and cloud-managed services are flattening demand. Source: bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/network-and-computer-systems-administrators.htm." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "BLS database administrators median annual wage may 2024?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "$117,450. This is the BLS OEWS May 2024 median annual wage for SOC 15-1245 (Database Administrators and Architects), with +9% projected employment growth 2024–2034. Source: bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/database-administrators.htm." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "BLS operations research analysts median annual wage may 2024?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "$91,290. This is the BLS OEWS May 2024 median annual wage for SOC 15-2031 (Operations Research Analysts), with +23% projected employment growth 2024–2034 — much faster than average. Source: bls.gov/ooh/math/operations-research-analysts.htm." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "BLS software quality assurance analysts and testers job outlook 2024 2034?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Per BLS OOH 2024–34 (SOC 15-1253, Software QA Analysts and Testers): May 2024 median annual wage $101,800, with about +14% projected growth from 2024 to 2034 — faster than average. The QA / testing function is sometimes published jointly with software developers under the umbrella 15-1252/15-1253 SOC group." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "BLS writers and authors median annual wage may 2024?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "$72,270 (BLS OEWS May 2024, SOC 27-3043, Writers and Authors). Generative AI exposure is one of the most-discussed disruption vectors for this occupation; the BLS OOH 2024–34 outlook is roughly +5% growth, slower than average. Source: bls.gov/ooh/media-and-communication/writers-and-authors.htm." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "OECD average annual wages 2024 USD PPP — by country?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Latest OECD Average Annual Wages 2024 figures (USD constant PPP, full-time equivalent, total economy): United States $83,200, Iceland $82,900, Luxembourg $82,500, Netherlands $76,400, Belgium $72,900, Germany $67,200, United Kingdom $60,400, Canada $60,000, OECD average ~$57,800, France $55,800. Always check live values at data-explorer.oecd.org." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "AI skills wage premium statistics 2026 — what's the figure?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "PwC AI Jobs Barometer 2025 (covering 800M+ job postings across six countries) reports AI-skilled workers earn a 56% wage premium over non-AI peers in the same occupation, up from 25% in 2024. The same-SOC premium is smaller (15–35% at senior tenure, near-zero at entry level) — the cross-occupation headline reflects both pure skill rent and compositional concentration of AI-skilled postings in higher-paying jobs." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Average AI consultant hourly rate 2026 — what does the data show?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "There is no official statistic. Triangulating: BLS Management Analysts (SOC 13-1111) median annual wage $99,410 (May 2024) ≈ $48/hour. Independent AI consultants typically charge $75–$150/hour (junior), $150–$350/hour (senior), $300–$600/hour (principal). Big 4 / strategy firm AI consultant client billing rates run $300–$1,500/hour depending on level. Frontier AI lab contractors regularly clear $500/hour, often with equity offered in lieu." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "AI ethics and compliance jobs salary demand insights 2025 2026 — what are typical bands?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "AI ethics lead / Responsible AI lead: $140k–$220k total cash. AI compliance officer: $110k–$180k. AI ethicist (research-leaning): $160k–$260k base. Model risk manager (banking with AI focus): $150k–$240k. AI governance lead: $180k–$280k. AI red-teaming / safety engineer: $160k–$300k base. Bands are illustrative; demand growth is driven by EU AI Act Annex III, NIST AI Risk Management Framework, and ISO/IEC 42001 adoption." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Top AI researcher compensation 2026 — what's the ceiling?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "At frontier AI labs (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google DeepMind, Meta FAIR, xAI), principal/staff researcher total compensation packages of $700k–$2M+ are publicly documented (cash + equity + bonus, often with multi-year vesting). The BLS official anchor for AI research roles is SOC 15-1221 (Computer and Information Research Scientists), median $140,910 in May 2024 — frontier-firm compensation is 5–14× the BLS median due to equity dominance." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "AI alignment researcher salary 2026 — what's the range?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "AI alignment / AI safety researcher roles at frontier labs typically pay $200k–$350k base, with total compensation $400k–$1.2M including equity grants. The role is research-heavy and concentrated at a small number of organizations (Anthropic, OpenAI, Google DeepMind, Redwood Research, Apollo Research, METR). It is captured under SOC 15-1221 in BLS statistics with a substantial PhD-specialization premium." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "AI red teaming salary 2026 — typical band?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "AI red teaming and safety engineers typically earn $160k–$300k base in 2026, with total compensation $300k–$700k+ at frontier firms. The role combines information security (SOC 15-1212, median $124,910) with AI research methods (SOC 15-1221). Demand is driven by frontier-model evaluation, EU AI Act post-market monitoring requirements, and NIST AI RMF adoption." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "AI ethicist salary 2026 — what's the band?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "AI ethicists in U.S. enterprise typically earn $140k–$240k total cash, with research-leaning roles at $160k–$260k base. Mapping to BLS is hybrid: closest SOC anchors are 13-1041 (Compliance Officers) for governance-leaning ethicists and 15-1221 (Computer and Information Research Scientists) for research-leaning roles. PhD in philosophy, social science, or law is increasingly typical for senior positions." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "MLOps engineer salary range US 2024?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "MLOps engineers are classified under SOC 15-1252 (Software Developers) in BLS statistics, with a May 2024 median annual wage of $133,080. The MLOps-specialized band typically runs $150k–$240k base in 2026, reflecting the AI premium on top of the DevOps software developer median. At frontier firms, total compensation reaches $220k–$450k." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Applied scientist job posting United States 2026 — where do these roles sit?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Applied scientist is not a discrete SOC occupation in BLS statistics. It is typically captured under SOC 15-1221 (Computer and Information Research Scientists, median $140,910 May 2024) at the p75–p90 of the wage distribution. Base salary bands at frontier U.S. firms (Amazon, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, Google) typically run $180k–$300k, with total compensation 1.5–3× higher when equity and target bonus are included." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "AI versus non-AI salary gap data 2026 — same SOC vs cross-occupation?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "The same-SOC gap is much smaller than the cross-occupation headline. Within the same SOC code at junior tenure, the AI-skill premium is near-zero to +15%; at senior tenure it widens to +15% to +35%. The PwC AI Jobs Barometer 2025 headline +56% premium is a cross-occupation average — partly reflecting that AI-skilled postings concentrate in higher-paying occupations (data scientists, ML engineers, AI researchers) rather than pure skill rent inside the same role." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "EUR-Lex Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 Annex III employment recruitment selection high-risk AI systems — what does it say?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Annex III, point 4 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 classifies as high-risk AI systems used in (a) recruitment, candidate selection, targeted job advertising, application analysis and filtering, candidate evaluation; and (b) decisions on terms of work-related relationships, promotion or termination of contracts, task allocation based on individual behaviour or personal traits, and monitoring/evaluation of performance and behaviour. General application from 2026-08-02. Source: eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/1689/oj/eng." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "How to use AI for talent benchmarking?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Combine three layers: (1) Official statistics — BLS OEWS, Canada Job Bank, Singapore MOM, UK ONS/Skills England, OECD AAW for cross-country base rates; (2) Posting-based signals — Indeed Hiring Lab AI Tracker, OECD skills-based detection, Lightcast/Brookings — for demand pressure and same-SOC AI premium; (3) AI-augmented analysis — LLMs for posting de-duplication, skill extraction, and band justification, with human review of any benchmark before it reaches a compensation decision. Always cite the underlying official source." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Fastest growing sectors for AI talent demand 2024 2025?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Per OECD evidence (2019–2022, 14 countries), the three most AI-job-intensive sectors are: (1) Information & Communication, (2) Financial & Insurance, and (3) Professional, Scientific & Technical services. The fastest-growing sectors in 2024–2025 are healthcare (clinical AI deployment, claims automation), public sector (EU AI Act compliance roles, defence AI), and energy (industrial AI, optimization)." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Indeed hiring lab software development job postings index 2026 — what does it show?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "The Indeed Hiring Lab job_postings_tracker repository publishes daily indices of software development posting volumes by country (US, CA, UK, IE, AU, DE, FR, IT, NL). The 2025–2026 picture is one of softening overall posting volume but rising AI-keyword share within software developer postings — the AI-keyword overlay on software developer postings more than doubled between January 2024 and January 2026 in the United States." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Job Bank wages software developer Canada — low / median / high hourly?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Per the Canadian government Job Bank wage profile for software developers (NOC 21232), the national hourly wages are typically reported as: low CAD 27–32 / hour, median CAD 44–48 / hour, high CAD 65–72 / hour (2023–2024 reference period). At 40h/52w, the median annualizes to ~CAD 92,000–100,000. Always check the live profile at jobbank.gc.ca for current values." } } ] } ] }, { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/#organization", "name": "Alice Labs", "url": "https://alicelabs.ai/", "logo": "https://alicelabs.ai/images/alice-logo.png", "sameAs": [ "https://www.linkedin.com/company/alicelabsai/", "https://www.trustpilot.com/review/alicelabs.ai", "https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q140369570" ] }, { "@type": "Person", "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/en/linus-ingemarsson#person", "name": "Linus Ingemarsson", "jobTitle": "Co-Founder", "url": "https://alicelabs.ai/en/linus-ingemarsson", "affiliation": { "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/#organization" }, "sameAs": [ "https://www.linkedin.com/in/linus-ingemarsson/", "https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q140369914" ], "knowsAbout": [ "AI Strategy", "AI Engineering", "AI Labor Markets", "AI Compensation" ] }, { "@type": "Report", "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/reports/global-ai-talent-compensation-index-2026/#report", "name": "Global AI Talent & Compensation Index 2026", "headline": "Global AI Talent & Compensation Index 2026: Salaries, Demand & Skills", "datePublished": "2026-04-20", "dateModified": "2026-07-15", "version": "1.4", "inLanguage": "en-US", "author": { "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/en/linus-ingemarsson#person" }, "publisher": { "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/#organization" }, "description": "Cross-country benchmark of AI job-posting demand, role taxonomy, and data-scientist compensation using official wage statistics and OECD evidence. Covers AU, CA, DE, FR, GB, IE, IT, NL, US, plus EU AI Act Annex III and EU Pay Transparency Directive. v1.4 (2026-06-26) adds a Q2 2026 deep update: detailed BLS 2024–34 outlooks for software developers / data scientists / computer & information research scientists / AI-adjacent SOC occupations, OECD Average Annual Wages 2024 USD PPP cross-country table, AI skills wage premium 2026, AI ethics & compliance / AI specialist / AI researcher / AI alignment / AI red teaming / AI ethicist / MLOps / AI consultant salary bands, applied scientist positioning, AI vs non-AI salary gap, EU AI Act Annex III point 4 verbatim summary, 26 new FAQ entries, 15-term glossary, and How to cite this report.", "about": [ "AI talent", "AI compensation", "Data scientist salary", "AI job postings", "AI workforce", "EU AI Act", "Pay Transparency Directive", "OECD AI", "BLS wages", "AI hiring" ], "isBasedOn": [ "https://www.bls.gov/ooh/math/data-scientists.htm", "https://github.com/hiring-lab/ai-tracker", "https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/emerging-trends-in-ai-skill-demand-across-14-oecd-countries_7c691b9a-en.html", "https://www.jobbank.gc.ca/marketreport/wages-occupation/227147/ca", "https://stats.mom.gov.sg/Pages/Occupational-Wages-Tables2024.aspx", "https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/1689/oj/eng", "https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2023/970/oj/eng" ], "keywords": "AI salary by country 2026, data scientist salary, AI job postings share, AI workforce OECD, AI hiring trends 2026, AI compensation benchmark, BLS data scientist median wage, EU AI Act employment, EU Pay Transparency Directive, how to benchmark AI compensation" }, { "@type": "Dataset", "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/reports/global-ai-talent-compensation-index-2026/#dataset", "name": "AI Talent & Compensation Scoreboard (v1.4)", "alternateName": "ai_talent_comp_index_2026_v1_4", "description": "26 indicators covering AI job-posting demand (Indeed AI Tracker, 9 countries), official wage benchmarks (US BLS, Canada Job Bank, Singapore MOM, UK Skills England), and EU regulatory dates (AI Act, Pay Transparency Directive). Refreshed 2026-06-26 with Q2 2026 deep update commentary (scoreboard values unchanged).", "datePublished": "2026-04-20", "dateModified": "2026-07-15", "version": "1.4", "inLanguage": "en-US", "creator": { "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/en/linus-ingemarsson#person" }, "publisher": { "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/#organization" }, "license": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "isAccessibleForFree": true, "variableMeasured": [ "AI share of job postings", "Median annual wage data scientists", "Median annual wage software developers", "Wage distribution percentiles", "Hourly wage Canada", "Monthly basic wage Singapore", "PPP conversion factor", "EU AI Act application dates", "EU Pay Transparency transposition deadline" ], "spatialCoverage": [ "AU", "CA", "DE", "FR", "GB", "IE", "IT", "NL", "US", "SG", "EU" ], "distribution": [ { "@type": "DataDownload", "encodingFormat": "text/csv", "contentUrl": "https://alicelabs.ai/data/talent-scoreboard.csv" }, { "@type": "DataDownload", "encodingFormat": "application/json", "contentUrl": "https://alicelabs.ai/data/talent-scoreboard.json" } ] }, { "@type": "HowTo", "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/reports/global-ai-talent-compensation-index-2026/#howto", "name": "How to Benchmark AI Compensation Across Countries", "description": "A 6-step reproducible workflow for HR, Total Rewards, and labor-market analysts using only official wage statistics and public posting data.", "totalTime": "PT2H", "inLanguage": "en-US", "author": { "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/en/linus-ingemarsson#person" }, "step": [ { "@type": "HowToStep", "position": 1, "name": "Define the role precisely", "text": "Use ISCO-08 / SOC 2018 / NOC anchors. 'Data scientist' (SOC 15-2051) is the most reliable cross-country anchor." }, { "@type": "HowToStep", "position": 2, "name": "Pull official wage statistics first", "text": "BLS OEWS (US), Canada Job Bank (CA), Singapore MOM OWS (SG), UK ONS / Skills England (GB), Eurostat SES (EU)." }, { "@type": "HowToStep", "position": 3, "name": "Document the wage concept", "text": "Hourly vs monthly basic vs annual gross. Include or exclude bonuses, equity, employer pension contributions — be explicit." }, { "@type": "HowToStep", "position": 4, "name": "Adjust for working hours and coverage", "text": "Annualize hourly wages with documented assumptions (Canada: 40h × 52w). Note population coverage (e.g. ≥25-employee firms in SG MOM OWS)." }, { "@type": "HowToStep", "position": 5, "name": "Apply PPP only as a sanity check", "text": "Use World Bank ICP PPP for illustrative cross-country comparison — never as a definitive ranking." }, { "@type": "HowToStep", "position": 6, "name": "Triangulate with posting data", "text": "Cross-reference with Indeed AI Tracker posting share and OECD skills-based vacancy data to assess demand pressure on wages." } ] }, { "@type": "FAQPage", "mainEntity": [ { "@type": "Question", "name": "What is the median salary for a data scientist in 2026?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "U.S. BLS reports a median annual wage of $112,590 for data scientists (May 2024 OEWS). Canada's national median is CAD 46.15/hour (~CAD 96,000/year base). Singapore's median monthly basic wage is SGD 8,992 (June 2024, ~SGD 108,000/year, excluding bonuses). UK Skills England reports £49,873/year (Medium confidence)." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Which country has the highest AI job-posting share?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Per the Indeed Hiring Lab AI Tracker (2026-01-31): Canada 12.6%, Ireland 12.0%, UK 7.0%, Australia 5.8%, US 4.7%. These are keyword-based posting shares, not workforce shares." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Are AI jobs really more than 10% of all jobs?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "It depends on the definition. Keyword-based posting shares (Indeed) reach 12.6% in Canada. Skills-based detection (OECD, 14 countries, 2019–2022) finds AI-related vacancies remained <1% of postings. Both are correct; they measure different things." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "How much do machine learning engineers earn in the US?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "ML engineers are typically classified as software developers in BLS statistics, with a May 2024 median annual wage of $133,080. Specialized ML/AI roles at frontier AI companies often command 2–4× this median, but those figures come from private aggregators." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What does the EU AI Act mean for AI hiring tools?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "EU AI Act Annex III classifies AI used in recruitment, candidate selection, performance evaluation, and worker monitoring as high-risk. Providers and deployers must meet conformity assessment, data governance, human oversight, transparency, and post-market monitoring obligations. General application is 2026-08-02." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "When does the EU Pay Transparency Directive take effect?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Directive (EU) 2023/970 must be transposed into EU member state law by 2026-06-07. It requires pre-employment salary range disclosure, prohibits asking about pay history, and introduces gender pay gap reporting at 100+ employees." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "How do I benchmark AI compensation across countries?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Start with official wage statistics (US BLS, Canada Job Bank, Singapore MOM, UK ONS/Skills England). Document what each measure includes (basic vs gross; hourly vs monthly vs annual; bonuses included/excluded). Use PPP only as illustrative sanity checks." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Is the AI talent shortage real in 2026?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Yes — converging evidence: BLS projects 34% data scientist employment growth 2024–2034; WEF Future of Jobs 2025 lists AI/ML specialists among fastest-growing roles; OECD reports increasing demand for bundled AI skills." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What roles count as AI talent?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Seven role families: AI research & modeling, ML engineering & deployment, data science & analytics, data engineering & platforms, AI product & operations, AI governance & risk, and AI-augmented domain roles." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "How often is this report updated?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Quarterly updates for Indeed AI Tracker demand metrics. Annual refresh of wage benchmarks aligned with official release cycles (BLS OEWS in April, Canada Job Bank, Singapore MOM in August). Each release is versioned with documented changes. Last reviewed: 2026-06-26." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "AI ethics and compliance jobs salary demand insights 2025 2026 — pay bands and hiring signals?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "AI ethics and compliance is now a discrete sub-market. U.S. base salary bands in 2026: AI ethicist $140k–$260k, AI compliance officer $110k–$180k, AI governance lead $180k–$300k, model risk manager $160k–$280k. BLS SOC 13-1041 (Compliance Officers) median is $76,980 (May 2024); AI-specialized roles command a 40–130% premium. WEF Future of Jobs 2025 ranks AI and information-processing the fastest-growing skill category through 2030, cited by 87% of employers. EU AI Act Annex III (general application 2026-08-02) is the largest structural driver." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "BLS software developers outlook 2024 2034 — projected growth, median pay, and openings summary?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Per BLS OOH 2024–34 (SOC 15-1252, Software Developers, QA Analysts, and Testers): +17% projected employment growth 2024–2034 (much faster than average), May 2024 median annual wage $133,080, and about 327,900 openings projected per year on average over the decade. Most openings come from replacement need. Typical entry: bachelor's degree." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What is the BLS software developers outlook for 2024–2034?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Per the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook (Software Developers, QA Analysts, and Testers, 2024–34 cycle), employment is projected to grow 17% from 2024 to 2034 — much faster than the average for all occupations. May 2024 median annual wage: $133,080. About 327,900 openings projected each year on average, many resulting from need to replace workers who transfer occupations or exit the labor force." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What is the BLS computer and information research scientists outlook for 2024–2034?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Per the BLS OOH 2024–34 cycle for Computer and Information Research Scientists (SOC 15-1221), employment is projected to grow 26% from 2024 to 2034 — much faster than average. May 2024 median annual wage: $140,910. The growth is driven by demand for AI/ML research, cybersecurity, and scientific computing applications." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What is the BLS data scientists outlook for 2024–2034?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Per the BLS OOH (Data Scientists, SOC 15-2051, 2024–34 cycle), employment is projected to grow 34% — among the fastest-growing major occupations in the U.S. May 2024 median annual wage: $112,590 (10th–90th percentile: $63,650–$194,410). About 20,800 openings are projected each year on average over the decade." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What is the average AI consultant hourly rate in 2026?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "No official statistical agency publishes 'AI consultant' as a separate occupation. Triangulating: BLS Management Analysts (SOC 13-1111, May 2024 median $99,410/year ≈ $48/hour), independent AI consultant rates commonly span $100–$400/hour for senior practitioners per industry surveys, and frontier-firm contractors regularly clear $500+/hour. Hourly figures from private aggregators are not directly comparable to BLS occupational wage statistics, which exclude self-employed and contract workers." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What is the AI skills wage premium in 2026?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "OECD evidence shows AI-skilled roles command wage premia, but harmonized cross-country figures are scarce. PwC's 2025 AI Jobs Barometer (analyzing 800M+ postings across 6 countries) reported AI-skilled workers earn a 56% wage premium over non-AI peers in the same occupation — up from 25% in 2024. Stanford HAI AI Index 2025 corroborates persistent and rising premia for ML/AI skills, particularly in finance, professional services, and IT." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "BLS software developers outlook 2024 2034 — what does the official BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook project?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Per the BLS OOH 2024–34 cycle (SOC 15-1252, Software Developers, QA Analysts, and Testers), employment is projected to grow 17% from 2024 to 2034 — much faster than the average for all occupations. May 2024 median annual wage: $133,080. About 327,900 openings projected each year on average over the decade." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "BLS software developers median annual wage May 2024 — exact figure?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "$133,080 (BLS OEWS May 2024 median annual wage for SOC 15-1252)." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "BLS computer and information research scientists median pay 2024?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "$140,910 — BLS OEWS May 2024 median annual wage for SOC 15-1221 (Computer and Information Research Scientists), with +26% projected employment growth 2024–2034." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "BLS compliance officers occupational outlook 2024 2034?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Per BLS OOH 2024–34 (SOC 13-1041, Compliance Officers): May 2024 median annual wage $76,980, with approximately +3% projected growth from 2024 to 2034 (slower than average). The AI-specific compliance sub-segment is growing materially faster, with AI compliance officer salary bands of $110k–$180k base in 2026." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "BLS network and computer systems administrators job outlook 2024 2034?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Per BLS OOH 2024–34 (SOC 15-1244): May 2024 median annual wage $96,800, with approximately +1% projected growth from 2024 to 2034 (little or no change)." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "BLS database administrators median annual wage May 2024?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "$117,450 — BLS OEWS May 2024 median annual wage for SOC 15-1245 (Database Administrators and Architects), with +9% projected employment growth 2024–2034." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "BLS operations research analysts median annual wage May 2024?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "$91,290 — BLS OEWS May 2024 median annual wage for SOC 15-2031 (Operations Research Analysts), with +23% projected employment growth 2024–2034 (much faster than average)." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "BLS software quality assurance analysts and testers job outlook 2024 2034?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Per BLS OOH 2024–34 (SOC 15-1253, Software QA Analysts and Testers): May 2024 median annual wage $101,800, with approximately +14% projected growth from 2024 to 2034." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "BLS writers and authors median annual wage May 2024?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "$72,270 — BLS OEWS May 2024 median annual wage for SOC 27-3043 (Writers and Authors), with approximately +5% projected employment growth 2024–2034." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "OECD average annual wages 2024 USD PPP by country?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Latest OECD AAW 2024 (USD constant PPP, full-time equivalent): United States $83,200, Iceland $82,900, Luxembourg $82,500, Netherlands $76,400, Belgium $72,900, Germany $67,200, United Kingdom $60,400, Canada $60,000, OECD average ~$57,800, France $55,800. Always verify current vintage at data-explorer.oecd.org." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Top AI researcher compensation 2026 — what's the ceiling?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "At frontier AI labs (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google DeepMind, Meta FAIR, xAI), principal/staff researcher total compensation packages of $700k–$2M+ are publicly documented (cash + equity + multi-year vesting). BLS official anchor: SOC 15-1221 Computer and Information Research Scientists, median $140,910 May 2024 — frontier-firm comp is 5–14× BLS median due to equity dominance." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "AI alignment researcher salary 2026?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "AI alignment / AI safety researcher roles at frontier labs typically pay $200k–$350k base, with total compensation $400k–$1.2M including equity. Captured under SOC 15-1221 with PhD-specialization premium. Concentrated at Anthropic, OpenAI, Google DeepMind, Redwood Research, Apollo Research, METR." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "AI red teaming salary 2026?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "AI red teaming and safety engineers typically earn $160k–$300k base in 2026, with total comp $300k–$700k+ at frontier firms. Combines information security (SOC 15-1212, median $124,910) with AI research methods (SOC 15-1221)." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "AI ethicist salary 2026?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "AI ethicists in U.S. enterprise typically earn $140k–$240k total cash, with research-leaning roles at $160k–$260k base. Mapping to BLS is hybrid: SOC 13-1041 (Compliance Officers) for governance-leaning ethicists; SOC 15-1221 (Computer and Information Research Scientists) for research-leaning roles." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "MLOps engineer salary range US 2024?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "MLOps engineers are classified under SOC 15-1252 (Software Developers, median $133,080 May 2024). The MLOps-specialized band typically runs $150k–$240k base in 2026, with total compensation reaching $220k–$450k at frontier firms." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "AI specialist salary 2026?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "AI specialist base salary band (U.S., 2026 est.): $130k–$220k; total compensation $200k–$450k including equity at frontier firms. Mapping varies: software developers (SOC 15-1252, median $133,080) or data scientists (SOC 15-2051, median $112,590)." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "AI engineer salary Europe 2026?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "AI engineer base salary bands (2026 est., illustrative): UK £60,000–£120,000; Germany €65,000–€115,000; France €55,000–€100,000; Netherlands €60,000–€105,000; Ireland €70,000–€130,000; Sweden SEK 600k–1.05M; Spain €45,000–€85,000; Italy €40,000–€80,000. Base only; equity excluded. EU compensation benchmarking should improve materially from H2 2026 onwards as EU Pay Transparency Directive transposition surfaces salary ranges in postings." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Applied scientist job posting United States 2026 — where do these roles sit in BLS?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Applied scientist is not a discrete SOC occupation in BLS statistics. It is typically captured under SOC 15-1221 (Computer and Information Research Scientists, median $140,910 May 2024) at the p75–p90 of the wage distribution. Base salary bands at frontier U.S. firms (Amazon, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, Google) typically run $180k–$300k, total comp 1.5–3× higher with equity." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "AI versus non-AI salary gap data 2026 — same SOC vs cross-occupation?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Same-SOC AI premium: near-zero at entry, +15–35% at senior tenure. Cross-occupation AI premium: +56% (PwC AI Jobs Barometer 2025, up from 25% in 2024). Cross-occupation headline partly reflects composition (AI-skilled postings concentrate in higher-paying occupations) rather than pure skill rent." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "EUR-Lex Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 Annex III employment recruitment selection high-risk AI systems — what does it say?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Annex III, point 4 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 classifies as high-risk AI systems used in (a) recruitment, candidate selection, targeted job advertising, application analysis/filtering, candidate evaluation; and (b) decisions on terms of work-related relationships, promotion or termination, task allocation based on individual behaviour or personal traits, and monitoring/evaluation of performance and behaviour. General application from 2026-08-02." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "How to use AI for talent benchmarking?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Combine three layers: (1) Official statistics — BLS OEWS, Canada Job Bank, Singapore MOM, UK ONS/Skills England, OECD AAW for cross-country base rates; (2) Posting-based signals — Indeed Hiring Lab AI Tracker, OECD skills-based detection, Lightcast/Brookings — for demand pressure and same-SOC AI premium; (3) AI-augmented analysis — LLMs for posting de-duplication, skill extraction, band justification, with human review of any benchmark before it reaches a compensation decision. Always cite the underlying official source." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Fastest growing sectors for AI talent demand 2024 2025?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Per OECD evidence (2019–2022, 14 countries): the three most AI-job-intensive sectors are (1) Information & Communication, (2) Financial & Insurance, and (3) Professional, Scientific & Technical services. Fastest-growing sectors 2024–2025: healthcare, public sector (EU AI Act compliance, defence AI), and energy (industrial AI, optimization)." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Indeed hiring lab software development job postings index 2026 — what does it show?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "The Indeed Hiring Lab job_postings_tracker repository publishes daily indices of software development posting volumes by country. The 2025–2026 picture is softening overall posting volume but rising AI-keyword share within software developer postings — the AI-keyword overlay on US software developer postings more than doubled between January 2024 and January 2026." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Job Bank wages software developer Canada low median high hourly?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Per Job Bank wage profile for software developers (NOC 21232): national hourly wages typically low CAD 27–32 / median CAD 44–48 / high CAD 65–72 (2023–2024 reference period). At 40h/52w, the median annualizes to ~CAD 92,000–100,000." } } ] }, { "@type": "DigitalDocument", "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/reports/global-ai-talent-compensation-index-2026/#digitaldocument", "name": "Global AI Talent & Compensation Index 2026 (Digital Report)", "alternateName": "ai_talent_comp_index_2026_v1_4", "datePublished": "2026-04-20", "dateModified": "2026-07-15", "version": "1.4", "inLanguage": "en-US", "encodingFormat": [ "text/html", "text/csv", "application/json" ], "license": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "creator": { "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/en/linus-ingemarsson#person" }, "publisher": { "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/#organization" }, "isAccessibleForFree": true, "about": "Cross-country benchmark of AI job-posting demand, role taxonomy, and AI-adjacent compensation using only public, official sources.", "hasPart": [ { "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/reports/global-ai-talent-compensation-index-2026/#dataset" }, { "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/reports/global-ai-talent-compensation-index-2026/#glossary" } ] }, { "@type": "DefinedTermSet", "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/reports/global-ai-talent-compensation-index-2026/#glossary", "name": "Global AI Talent & Compensation Index 2026 — Glossary", "inLanguage": "en-US", "creator": { "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/en/linus-ingemarsson#person" }, "publisher": { "@id": "https://alicelabs.ai/#organization" }, "license": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "hasDefinedTerm": [ { "@type": "DefinedTerm", "name": "AI talent", "description": "The population of workers who design, build, deploy, govern, or operate artificial intelligence systems — spanning research, ML engineering, data science, data engineering, AI product/operations, AI governance, and AI-augmented domain roles.", "url": "https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/the-supply-demand-and-characteristics-of-the-ai-workforce-across-oecd-countries_bb17314a-en.html", "sameAs": "https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q11660" }, { "@type": "DefinedTerm", "name": "AI workforce (OECD definition)", "description": "Workers measured via skill intensity × employment — combining statistics, computer-science and machine-learning competencies; 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Global AI Talent & Compensation Index 2026: Salaries, Demand & Skills Research Report Published April 2026 Updated July 15, 2026 v1.4 # Global AI Talent & Compensation Index 2026: Salaries, Demand & Skills Cross-country benchmark of AI job-posting demand, role taxonomy, and data-scientist compensation — for HR leaders, investors, and labor economists Authors: [Linus Ingemarsson](https://alicelabs.ai/en/linus-ingemarsson)(Co-Founder, Alice Labs) [How to Cite](#cite) $112,590 US Median Wage Data scientists, May 2024 (BLS) 12.6% Top AI-Job Country Canada, Jan 2026 (Indeed) 9 Countries Tracked AU CA DE FR GB IE IT NL US +34% US Job Growth Data scientists 2024–2034 (BLS) ## Contents - [At a Glance](#at-a-glance) - [Executive Summary](#executive-summary) - [Key Findings (13)](#key-findings) - [Definitions: Three Competing Concepts of 'AI Jobs'](#definitions) - [Talent & Compensation Scoreboard](#scoreboard) - [Labor Demand: AI Job-Posting Indicators](#demand) - [Role Taxonomy & Skills Evidence](#taxonomy) - [Compensation Benchmarks (Official Wages First)](#compensation) - [Regulatory Layer: EU AI Act & Pay Transparency](#regulation) - [How to Benchmark AI Compensation Across Countries](#how-to-benchmark) - [Structured Claims (15, Citation-Grade)](#claims) - [Recommendations by Audience](#recommendations) - [Frequently Asked Questions](#faq) - [BLS Software Developers 2024–2034: Deep Dive](#expanded-bls-software-developers) - [BLS Computer & Information Research Scientists 2024–2034: Deep Dive](#expanded-bls-research-scientists) - [BLS Data Scientists 2024–2034: Deep Dive](#expanded-bls-data-scientists) - [AI-Adjacent BLS Occupations 2024–2034 (Compliance, InfoSec, DBA, Ops Research, QA, Writers)](#expanded-adjacent-bls-occupations) - [OECD Average Annual Wages 2024 (USD PPP, By Country)](#expanded-oecd-ppp) - [AI Skills Wage Premium 2025–2026 (PwC, OECD, Stanford HAI)](#expanded-ai-wage-premium) - [AI Ethics & Compliance Jobs: Salaries, Demand, 2025–2026](#expanded-ai-ethics-compliance) - [AI Specialist / Engineer / Researcher / Alignment / Red Teaming / Ethicist / MLOps Salaries 2026](#expanded-ai-role-salaries) - [AI Consultant Hourly Rate 2026 (with BLS Anchor)](#expanded-ai-consultant) - [Applied Scientist Job Postings United States 2026](#expanded-applied-scientist) - [AI vs Non-AI Salary Gap Data 2026 (Same-SOC vs Cross-Occupation)](#expanded-salary-gap) - [EU AI Act Annex III Employment Recruitment Selection (Verbatim Summary)](#expanded-eu-ai-act) - [Frequently Asked Questions (Q2 2026 Update)](#expanded-faq) - [Glossary (15 Definitions, Citation-Ready)](#glossary) - [How to Cite This Report](#how-to-cite) - [Methodology Note & Author Credentials (v1.4)](#methodology-note) - [Version History Timeline](#version-history-timeline) - [FAQ](#faq) - [Methodology](#methodology) - [Cite](#cite) ![Linus Ingemarsson - Author at Alice Labs](/images/linus-ingemarsson.png) Written by [Linus Ingemarsson ](/en/linus-ingemarsson) ![Eric Lundberg - Reviewer at Alice Labs](/images/eric-lundberg.png) Reviewed by [Eric Lundberg ](/en/eric-lundberg) Published April 20, 2026 · Updated July 15, 2026 Methodology & Transparency: This analysis draws on primary sources — including Eurostat, OECD, national statistical agencies, peer-reviewed literature, and official vendor disclosures — combined with Alice Labs implementation data. AI tooling assists synthesis; every claim is human-reviewed against the cited source. **All figures and claims link to their public source for verification.** Reviewed by the named author and reviewer above. Methodology, source list, and revision history are available below. ## Cite This Report APABIBTEXMLA Ingemarsson, L. (2026, April 20). Global AI Talent & Compensation Index 2026 (Version 1.1). Alice Labs. https://alicelabs.ai/reports/global-ai-talent-compensation-index-2026 Copy citationVersion 1.4 • Published April 20, 2026 AT A GLANCE Updated 2026-04-20 In 2026, the median annual wage for a U.S. data scientist is **$112,590** (BLS, May 2024) and U.S. employment is projected to grow **+34% by 2034**. Canada (12.6%) and Ireland (12.0%) lead the world in AI-related job-posting share, while OECD skills-based detection finds AI vacancies remain under **1%** of postings. Key Takeaway The **Global AI Talent & Compensation Index 2026** (published **2026-04-20**) benchmarks AI labor demand and compensation using only public, official sources. Demand is measured via the **Indeed Hiring Lab AI Tracker** across nine countries (AU, CA, DE, FR, GB, IE, IT, NL, US) and **OECD's skills-based detection** across 14 countries — which finds AI-related vacancies are still **<1%** of postings (2019–2022) despite rapid growth. Compensation prioritizes official wage statistics: U.S. BLS median **$112,590** for data scientists and **$133,080** for software developers (May 2024); Canada Job Bank median **CAD 46.15/hour** (2023–2024); Singapore MOM median monthly basic wage **SGD 8,992** (June 2024); UK Skills England **£49,873/year** (Medium confidence — no data year stated). U.S. data-scientist employment is projected to grow **34% from 2024 to 2034**. Limitations: posting-share indicators are sensitive to platform coverage and keyword taxonomy; wage data are not harmonized across countries (bonuses, equity, benefits); PPP conversions are illustrative; the EU AI Act classifies recruitment/selection AI as high-risk (Annex III), and the EU Pay Transparency Directive (2023/970) must be transposed by 2026-06-07. Q2 2026 UPDATE Last reviewed: 15 July 2026 · Next review due: 13 October 2026 v1.5 ### Latest insights — June 2026 Three Q2 2026 developments materially affect the AI talent picture without changing the underlying scoreboard values: - **BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook 2024–2034 cycle is now fully published** for the three core AI-adjacent occupations. **Data scientists (SOC 15-2051)**: +34% projected growth, median annual wage $112,590 (May 2024). **Software developers (SOC 15-1252)**: +17% growth, median $133,080 — roughly 327,900 openings projected per year on average through 2034. **Computer and information research scientists (SOC 15-1221)**: +26% growth, median $140,910 (May 2024). All three are classified as "much faster than average" growth occupations — confirming sustained wage pressure in the U.S. through the end of the decade. (Sources: [BLS OOH Data Scientists](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/math/data-scientists.htm); [BLS OOH Software Developers](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/software-developers.htm); [BLS OOH Computer & Info Research Scientists](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/computer-and-information-research-scientists.htm).) - **EU Pay Transparency Directive transposition deadline passed (2026-06-07)**. As of late June 2026, Ireland, Sweden, Belgium, and Poland have published consolidated transposition statutes; most other EU-27 member states are in late-stage parliamentary or implementing-act phases. For HR teams hiring AI talent across the EU, the practical effect is now visible: salary ranges are starting to appear in postings on national job platforms, materially improving the quality of EU-side compensation benchmarking from H2 2026 onwards. The European Commission's transposition tracker is the authoritative status reference ([EUR-Lex national implementing measures, Directive 2023/970](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/NIM/?uri=CELEX:32023L0970)). - **"Applied scientist" emerges as a discrete US posting category**. Searches for "applied scientist job posting United States 2026" surfaced this report at position ~33 — a long-tail signal that the role is consolidating outside frontier AI labs. Applied scientist is not yet a separate SOC occupation in BLS statistics; it is typically captured under _computer and information research scientists_ (SOC 15-1221, median $140,910) or _data scientists_ (15-2051). For benchmarking, treat applied scientist as a senior research-engineering hybrid sitting at the p75–p90 of the SOC 15-1221 distribution (≈$180k–$240k base, May 2024 BLS percentiles via O\*NET) — equity and target bonus typically push total compensation 1.5–3× higher at frontier firms. What's unchanged The Indeed Hiring Lab AI Tracker continues to show Canada (12.6%) and Ireland (12.0%) leading on AI job-posting share at the 2026-01-31 snapshot used in this report; the next quarterly Indeed refresh is expected to land in the next scoreboard release. OECD's underlying finding — that skills-based AI vacancies remain <1% of postings despite rapid growth — is consistent with the most recent [Stanford HAI AI Index 2025](https://hai.stanford.edu/ai-index) and the latest [OECD AI Skills & Workforce](https://www.oecd.org/en/topics/sub-issues/ai-skills-and-workforce.html) observatory updates. All Q2 2026 commentary above is additive context; no scoreboard values have been revised. ## Executive Summary **"AI jobs" is not a single statistical object across countries.** This report constructs a measurement-first, definition-first reference for (a) AI-related labor demand from online job postings, (b) an interoperable taxonomy of AI-adjacent roles, and (c) cross-country compensation benchmarks where credible public wage statistics exist. Three measurement systems disagree by design and must not be conflated: (1) **keyword-based posting shares** (Indeed Hiring Lab) report **2.6%–12.6%** across nine countries in January 2026; (2) **OECD skills-based detection** reports **<1%** of postings as AI-related vacancies (2019–2022, 14 countries); (3) **OECD AI workforce** measures workers with statistics, computer-science and ML skills via skill intensity × employment. Compensation evidence is strongest for the **data scientist** role: U.S. BLS reports a median annual wage of **$112,590** (May 2024, with 10th–90th percentile range $63,650–$194,410) and **34% projected employment growth 2024–2034**. Canada, Singapore and the UK provide official benchmarks at hourly, monthly, and annual cadences respectively — making harmonization non-trivial. PPP-adjusted comparisons are provided as _illustration only_, since wage definitions exclude bonuses, benefits and equity in different ways. The **regulatory layer** is increasingly material for AI hiring tools and compensation governance: the EU AI Act (Regulation 2024/1689) classifies AI used in recruitment, candidate evaluation and worker monitoring as **high-risk under Annex III**, and the **EU Pay Transparency Directive (2023/970)** must be transposed into national law by **2026-06-07**. Both will reshape how organizations document, audit and disclose AI-driven employment decisions and pay structures across the EU. ## Key Findings 13 data-driven insights ### 01 AI and information-processing technologies are the #1 fastest-growing skill category through 2030, cited by 87% of employers surveyed (WEF Future of Jobs 2025) 87% of employers rank AI/info-processing as fastest-growing skill; net +2M jobs from AI by 2030 (+11M created, -9M displaced) AI skill demand is now the dominant labor-market signal cited by employers globally — planning for AI hiring and reskilling is no longer optional for organizations above 100 FTE. Source: [World Economic Forum — Future of Jobs Report 2025](https://www.weforum.org/publications/the-future-of-jobs-report-2025/) ### 02 AI-related online vacancies are <1% of all postings in OECD's 14-country skills-based analysis (2019–2022) <1% (OECD), vs 2.6%–12.6% (Indeed keyword-based) Keyword-based vs skills-based detection produce 5–10× different headlines. Never conflate 'AI mentions in postings' with 'AI jobs' or 'AI workforce share'. Source: [OECD: Emerging trends in AI skill demand across 14 OECD countries](https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/emerging-trends-in-ai-skill-demand-across-14-oecd-countries_7c691b9a-en.html) ### 03 Canada and Ireland lead the Indeed AI Tracker in January 2026 CA 12.6%, IE 12.0%, GB 7.0%, AU 5.8%, US 4.7%, DE 3.9% Smaller economies with high English-language posting share (CA, IE) appear inflated relative to underlying AI workforce; treat as a leading indicator of AI skill diffusion in postings, not a population census. Source: [Indeed Hiring Lab AI Tracker (AI\_posting.csv)](https://github.com/hiring-lab/ai-tracker) ### 04 U.S. median annual wage for data scientists is $112,590 (May 2024) Median $112,590; p10 $63,650; p90 $194,410 BLS OEWS-derived values are the highest-confidence cross-country anchor. The 3× spread between p10 and p90 confirms wide variance by industry, geography and seniority. Source: [U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Outlook Handbook](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/math/data-scientists.htm) ### 05 U.S. data scientist employment is projected to grow 34% from 2024 to 2034 +34% (much faster than average for all occupations) Among the fastest-growing major occupations in the U.S. — implies persistent wage pressure, talent gaps, and elevated demand for upskilling pathways and apprenticeship programs. Source: [BLS Employment Projections / OOH](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/math/data-scientists.htm) ### 06 U.S. median annual wage for software developers is $133,080 (May 2024) $133,080 — higher than data scientists in median terms Engineering compensation continues to outpace data-science median in BLS series; ML engineering roles often classified as software developer for wage statistics. Source: [BLS OOH — Software Developers, QA Analysts, and Testers](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/Computer-and-Information-Technology/Software-developers.htm) ### 07 Canada's national median data scientist wage is CAD 46.15/hour (2023–2024) Low CAD 30; Median CAD 46.15; High CAD 69.74 Annualized at 40h/52w = ~CAD 96,000/year base. Hourly cadence makes direct comparison with U.S. annual figures dependent on assumed hours; benefits/equity reported separately. Source: [Government of Canada Job Bank (Labour Force Survey-sourced)](https://www.jobbank.gc.ca/marketreport/wages-occupation/227147/ca) ### 08 Singapore data scientist median monthly basic wage is SGD 8,992 (June 2024) p25 SGD 6,867; Median SGD 8,992; p75 SGD 12,055; gross median SGD 9,047 Annualized basic = ~SGD 108,000; excludes bonuses (typically 1–3 months) and CPF. Singapore consistently posts among the highest PPP-adjusted compensation for data scientists globally. Source: [Singapore MOM — Occupational Wage Survey 2024](https://stats.mom.gov.sg/Pages/Occupational-Wages-Tables2024.aspx) ### 09 UK Skills England occupational map reports data scientist median £49,873/year £49,873/year (SOC 2020 sub-unit 2433/04 'Statistical data scientists') Treated as Medium confidence — data year not stated on the page. Significantly below US/SG/CA medians; may reflect UK SOC inclusion of broader statistical roles, lagging data, or genuine pay differential. Source: [UK Skills England / Department for Education](https://occupational-maps.skillsengland.education.gov.uk/maps/occupation/OCC0585) ### 10 EU AI Act classifies AI in recruitment, candidate evaluation, and worker monitoring as high-risk (Annex III) Regulation (EU) 2024/1689; general application 2026-08-02 HR-tech vendors and deployers face conformity assessments, data governance, human oversight, and post-market monitoring duties. AI compliance is a new HR procurement criterion. Source: [EUR-Lex — EU AI Act](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/1689/oj/eng) ### 11 EU Pay Transparency Directive (2023/970) must be transposed by 2026-06-07 Salary range disclosure pre-employment; gender pay gap reporting at 100+ employees Materially increases salary-range data availability in EU job postings — and therefore the quality of compensation benchmarking from 2026 onwards. Source: [EUR-Lex — Directive (EU) 2023/970](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2023/970/oj/eng) ### 12 WEF Future of Jobs 2025 projects 78M net new jobs globally by 2030, with AI/ML specialists among fastest-growing Employer-survey based; 22% labor market disruption expected Survey-based outlooks and posting-based realities should be triangulated, not substituted. WEF tracks expectations; OECD/Indeed track behavior. Source: [World Economic Forum — Future of Jobs Report 2025](https://www.weforum.org/publications/the-future-of-jobs-report-2025/) ### 13 PPP-adjusted comparisons are illustrative only — wage definitions are not harmonized US $112.6k vs SG int$134k vs CA int$84k vs UK int$73k (illustrative) Bonuses, benefits, equity, working hours, and population coverage differ across each official series. Use PPP as a sanity check, never as a definitive ranking. Source: [Derived from BLS, Job Bank, MOM, Skills England + World Bank ICP PPP](https://datahub.io/core/ppp) ### Need Help Implementing These Findings? Alice Labs helps enterprises turn AI research into measurable business outcomes — from strategy to full-scale implementation. [Explore AI Consulting](/en/ai-consulting)[See AI Strategy Services](/en/ai-strategy) ## Definitions: Three Competing Concepts of 'AI Jobs' **"AI talent"** is the population of workers who design, build, deploy, govern, or operate artificial intelligence systems. **"AI compensation benchmarks"** are official wage statistics for AI-adjacent occupations (most reliably: data scientists and software developers) drawn from national statistical offices and government job-bank wage profiles. Both definitions are **measurement-dependent** — different sources count different things. ### Three competing definitions of "AI jobs" Concept What it measures Typical magnitude Source AI share of job postings Postings whose text contains AI keywords (7-day trailing avg.) 2.6%–12.6% Indeed Hiring Lab AI Tracker AI-related online vacancies Postings classified via skills-based detection <1% (2019–2022) OECD (14 countries) AI workforce Workers with statistics, CS and ML skills (skill intensity × employment) Definition-dependent OECD Data scientist (occupation) Standard occupational classification (SOC 15-2051 in US) Direct headcount BLS, Statistics Canada, Singapore MOM, Skills England Why this matters Headlines that say "AI jobs grew 12% in Canada" usually refer to **posting keywords**, not workforce. A 12.6% posting share in Canada (Indeed) and a <1% AI-vacancy share across 14 OECD countries (skills-based detection) describe **different statistical objects**. Both are correct; conflating them will mislead workforce planning and compensation benchmarking. ## Talent & Compensation Scoreboard The scoreboard compiles **26 indicators** across AI job-posting demand, official wage benchmarks, regulatory dates, and PPP-adjusted illustrations. Confidence: High for official statistics and legal texts, Medium for derived values and surveys. [Download CSV](/data/talent-scoreboard.csv)[Download JSON](/data/talent-scoreboard.json) $112,590 US Median Wage (Data Scientist) 12.6% Top AI-Posting Country (CA) +34% US Job Growth 2024–2034 9 Countries Tracked Indicator Value Year Geography Confidence AI Job Posting Share — Canada (latest) 12.6% 2026-01 CA High AI Job Posting Share — Ireland (latest) 12.0% 2026-01 IE High AI Job Posting Share — UK (latest) 7.0% 2026-01 GB High AI Job Posting Share — US (latest) 4.7% 2026-01 US High AI Job Posting Share — Germany (latest) 3.9% 2026-01 DE High OECD AI-Related Vacancies (skills-based) <1% 2019–2022 OECD-14 High US Data Scientist — Median Annual Wage $112,590 2024-05 US High US Software Developer — Median Annual Wage $133,080 2024-05 US High US Data Scientist — 10th Percentile Wage $63,650 2024-05 US High US Data Scientist — 90th Percentile Wage $194,410 2024-05 US High US Data Scientist Employment Growth +34% 2024–2034 US High Canada Data Scientist — Median Hourly CAD 46.15 2023–2024 CA High Canada Data Scientist — High Hourly CAD 69.74 2023–2024 CA High Singapore Data Scientist — Median Monthly Basic SGD 8,992 2024-06 SG High Singapore Data Scientist — p75 Monthly Basic SGD 12,055 2024-06 SG High UK Data Scientist — Median Annual £49,873 not stated GB Medium PPP-Adjusted Median — Singapore (illustrative) int$ 134,245 2024 SG Medium PPP-Adjusted Median — US (baseline) int$ 112,590 2024 US Medium PPP-Adjusted Median — Canada (illustrative) int$ 84,036 2024 CA Medium PPP-Adjusted Median — UK (illustrative) int$ 73,410 2024 GB Medium EU AI Act — Employment AI High-Risk (Annex III) In force phased 2024–2027 EU High EU AI Act — General Application 2026-08-02 2026 EU High EU Pay Transparency Directive — Transposition Deadline 2026-06-07 2026 EU High WEF Net New Jobs by 2030 78M 2025–2030 Global Medium Number of Curated Sources 80 2026 Global High Countries with AI Posting-Share Coverage 9 2026 Indeed Tracker High Interpretation The scoreboard is **measurement-first**: posting-share indicators (Indeed) and skills-based vacancy shares (OECD) describe different statistical objects. Wage benchmarks prioritize **official statistics** (BLS, Job Bank, Singapore MOM, Skills England). PPP-adjusted comparisons are illustrative only. ## Labor Demand: AI Job-Posting Indicators ### AI Job-Posting Share by Country (Jan 2026) Indeed Hiring Lab AI Tracker — keyword-based 7-day trailing average. Canada and Ireland lead by a 2–4× margin over major economies. Leader (>10%) Mid (4–10%) Lower (<4%) **Interpretation:** Posting-share is sensitive to platform coverage and English-language posting bias. Canada and Ireland's lead partly reflects Indeed's market share and English-language postings — not a 5× larger AI workforce. The **Indeed Hiring Lab AI Tracker** publishes a daily series of the share of job postings containing AI-related terms (e.g. "machine learning", "data science", "artificial intelligence") as a 7-day trailing average across nine countries. The **latest snapshot (2026-01-31)** shows wide cross-country variance: Country AI share of job postings (%) Date Canada 12.606% 2026-01-31 Ireland 11.965% 2026-01-31 United Kingdom 7.015% 2026-01-31 Australia 5.797% 2026-01-31 United States 4.670% 2026-01-31 Germany 3.942% 2026-01-31 Italy 3.718% 2026-01-31 France 3.055% 2026-01-31 Netherlands 2.632% 2026-01-31 ### Interpretation constraints This indicator measures **posting text (keyword presence)**, not classification of jobs into AI occupations or estimates of AI-worker counts. Online labor market data is documented as vulnerable to **representativeness issues, posting duplication, and platform coverage drift**. Country differences may partially reflect language coverage, English-language posting share, and platform market share — not just underlying labor demand. ### OECD evidence: skills-based detection OECD's 14-country study (2019–2022) using **skills-based detection** found AI-related vacancies remained **below 1%** of all postings despite rapid year-on-year growth. The most-demanded skill category was **machine learning**; complementary **socio-emotional skills** (communication, problem-solving, teamwork) gained importance over time, especially among AI-leading firms. The most AI-job-intensive sectors were **Information & Communication, Financial & Insurance, and Professional/Scientific/Technical services**. ### AI Skills Demand vs Complementary Skills OECD evidence: technical AI skills (ML, Python) lead in posting frequency, but complementary skills (communication, governance, MLOps) rise faster year-on-year. - Technical demand (postings) - Growing complementary importance **Hiring implication:** The "AI talent shortage" is most acute where ML expertise must be paired with communication, governance, and MLOps capabilities — i.e. roles that translate AI capability into business outcomes. ## Role Taxonomy & Skills Evidence ### AI Role Taxonomy — 7 Families Mapped to ISCO/SOC Cross-country comparability requires anchoring AI roles to standard occupational classifications. Job titles alone are inconsistent across employers. #### AI Research & Modeling Research Scientist (AI/ML) · Applied Scientist Wage proxy: $130k–250k+ (US, equity heavy) ISCO 2511 / SOC 15-1252 #### ML Engineering & Deployment ML Engineer · MLOps Engineer Wage proxy: Software dev: $133,080 median (BLS) ISCO 2512 / SOC 15-1252 #### Data Science & Analytics Data Scientist · Decision Scientist Wage proxy: $112,590 median (BLS) ISCO 2120 / SOC 15-2051 #### Data Engineering & Platforms Data Engineer · Analytics Engineer Wage proxy: Database admin: $104,610 (BLS) ISCO 2521 / SOC 15-1242 #### AI Product & Operations AI Product Manager · AI Program Manager Wage proxy: Mgmt occupations: $116,880 median ISCO 1330 / SOC 11-3021 #### AI Governance & Risk AI Compliance Lead · Responsible AI Lead Wage proxy: Compliance officers: $79,710 (BLS) ISCO 2422 / SOC 13-1041 #### AI-Augmented Domain Roles AI-augmented Marketer · AI Legal Analyst Wage proxy: Domain-specific; +AI skill premium Cross-classified; OECD skills view **Use this when:** writing job specs, building competency models, mapping headcount, or running cross-country compensation surveys. Use the ISCO/SOC anchors to align with national statistical offices. Cross-country comparability improves when roles are anchored to **standard occupational classifications** (ISCO-08 globally; SOC in the U.S./UK; NOC in Canada) and augmented with **skills evidence** from job postings and occupational standards. Job titles alone are inconsistent across employers, sectors, and countries. ### Working taxonomy (v1.0) — AI-adjacent role families Role family Typical titles Standardization notes AI research & modeling Research scientist (AI/ML), applied scientist Captured under computer/information research professionals; OECD measures via skills intensity ML engineering & deployment ML engineer, MLOps engineer, model deployment engineer Often classified as software developer in official wage stats; postings emphasize production ML stack Data science & analytics Data scientist, statistical data scientist, data analyst Explicitly measured in BLS, Job Bank, Singapore MOM, Skills England Data engineering & platforms Data engineer, analytics engineer Often proxied via software/database roles; skills include pipelines, storage, governance AI product & operations AI product manager, AI program manager Classified under management/professional groups; total compensation often includes equity not in official series AI governance & risk AI compliance lead, model risk manager, responsible AI lead Emerging family; demand expected to grow with EU AI Act and ISO/IEC 42001 adoption AI-augmented domain roles AI-augmented marketer, AI legal analyst, AI-enabled clinician Not separate occupations in official statistics; captured via skills-based posting detection ### Skills evidence (institutional sources) - **OECD**: AI-related jobs increasingly require **multiple AI skills bundled together**; complementary competencies (communication, creativity, teamwork) rise in importance over time. - **UK Skills England**: "Data scientist" (SOC 2020 sub-unit 2433/04) Knowledge/Skills/Behaviors include ML, AI techniques, statistical inference, and ethics/GDPR awareness. - **WEF Future of Jobs 2025**: AI & ML specialists among fastest-growing roles; analytical thinking, creative thinking, and AI/big data skills lead employer-reported priorities. ## Compensation Benchmarks (Official Wages First) ### Median Annual Wages — AI Roles by Country (2024) Official wage statistics converted to USD-equivalent at March 2026 reference rates. Local-currency benchmarks remain the citation-grade primary sources. **Caveat:** Singapore and Canada figures are annualized from monthly basic and hourly base — they exclude bonuses, overtime, commissions, equity, employer CPF and benefits. Use local-currency primary sources for compensation decisions. ### U.S. Data Scientist Wage Distribution (BLS, May 2024) A 3.05× spread separates the 10th and 90th percentile. The "average AI salary" headline is misleading without distribution context. p10 $64k Entry / Junior p25 $85k Early career Median $113k Mid-career p75 $152k Senior p90 $194k Principal / Staff ### United States — official benchmarks - **Data scientists:** median annual wage **$112,590** (May 2024); **+34% projected growth 2024–2034** (BLS OOH). - **Software developers:** median annual wage **$133,080** (May 2024) (BLS OOH). - **US data scientist wage distribution** (O\*NET, BLS-sourced): **p10 $63,650; p90 $194,410** — a 3× spread. ### Canada — official benchmarks (Job Bank / LFS) National data scientist wages: **low CAD 30.00/hour, median CAD 46.15/hour, high CAD 69.74/hour** (reference period 2023–2024; updated 2025-11-19). At 40h/52w, the median annualizes to ~**CAD 96,000/year** base. ### Singapore — Occupational Wage Survey 2024 Reference period **June 2024**; sample of full-time resident employees in private-sector establishments with ≥25 employees: - **Monthly basic wage:** p25 SGD 6,867 / median SGD 8,992 / p75 SGD 12,055 - **Monthly gross wage (median):** SGD 9,047 (basic + overtime + commissions; excludes bonuses and employer CPF) ### United Kingdom — Skills England occupational map "Data scientist" median salary **£49,873/year**, mapped to **SOC 2020 sub-unit group 2433/04 Statistical data scientists**. Treated as **Medium confidence** — the page does not disclose the underlying data year, and the SOC bucket may include broader statistical roles. ### Comparative table — PPP-adjusted (illustrative only) PPP comparisons are provided only as an illustrative normalization; compensation concepts differ across sources (hourly vs monthly; inclusion/exclusion of bonuses; population coverage). Do not interpret as a definitive ranking. Geography Local benchmark Local unit PPP-adjusted (int$/yr) Confidence United States 112,590 USD/year (May 2024 median) 112,590 Medium Singapore 8,992 SGD/month basic (Jun 2024) 134,245 Low–Medium (PPP year mismatch) Canada 46.15 CAD/hour median (2023–24) 84,036 Low–Medium (40h/52w assumption) United Kingdom 49,873 GBP/year (year not stated) 73,410 Low (data-year ambiguity) ## Regulatory Layer: EU AI Act & Pay Transparency ### Employment AI Regulatory Timeline (2025–2027) As of 2026-04-20, the next 4 months contain three binding deadlines that materially affect AI hiring tools and compensation governance in the EU and Colorado. 2025-02-02 past EU AI Act — Chapters I–II apply Prohibited practices banned 2025-08-02 past EU AI Act — Chapter V (GPAI) applies GPAI obligations + penalties 2026-06-07 imminent EU Pay Transparency Directive transposition deadline Salary disclosure pre-employment 2026-06-30 imminent Colorado SB24-205 effective (delayed) Algorithmic discrimination duties 2026-08-02 critical EU AI Act — General application Recruitment AI = high-risk (Annex III) 2027-08-02 future EU AI Act — Article 6(1) + GPAI transition Final compliance milestone **Action window:** Organizations using AI in recruitment, candidate evaluation, or worker monitoring should complete EU AI Act Annex III conformity assessments before **2026-08-02**. Pay-transparency disclosure must be live by **2026-06-07**. ### EU AI Act — employment is high-risk **Annex III of Regulation (EU) 2024/1689** classifies AI systems used in **recruitment, candidate selection, performance evaluation, and worker monitoring** as high-risk applications. High-risk providers and deployers face conformity assessments, data governance documentation, human oversight, transparency, accuracy, robustness, cybersecurity and post-market monitoring obligations. Date Application 2025-02-02 Chapters I–II (general provisions; prohibited practices) 2025-08-02 Chapter V (GPAI), specified chapters, penalties, codes 2026-08-02 General application of the AI Act 2027-08-02 Article 6(1) obligations; GPAI transition deadline for pre-existing models ### EU Pay Transparency Directive — improves comp data quality **Directive (EU) 2023/970** (OJ 2023-05-17) must be transposed into national law by **2026-06-07**. It requires employers to disclose **initial pay or pay range to candidates pre-employment**, prohibits asking candidates about their pay history, and (at 100+ employees) introduces gender pay gap reporting. The directive will materially increase the availability and accuracy of salary-range data in EU job postings — improving compensation benchmarking from 2026 onwards. ### U.S. state-level pay transparency Colorado's **Equal Pay for Equal Work Act** (2021), New York City's **Local Law 32 of 2022**, California, Washington and others now require salary range disclosure in postings. These laws are the primary reason posting-based compensation data has become more usable in the U.S. since 2022. ## How to Benchmark AI Compensation Across Countries A reproducible workflow for HR, Total Rewards, and labor-market analysts who need to compare AI compensation across countries without falling into the most common methodological traps. Each step is tied to an official statistical source. HOW-TO GUIDE ### How to Benchmark AI Compensation Across Countries (6 steps) A reproducible workflow for HR, Total Rewards, and labor-market analysts. Designed to be cited by AI assistants and Google AI Overviews. 1. 1 Define the role precisely Use ISCO-08 / SOC 2018 / NOC anchors. 'Data scientist' (SOC 15-2051) is the most reliable cross-country anchor. 2. 2 Pull official wage statistics first BLS OEWS (US), Canada Job Bank (CA), Singapore MOM OWS (SG), UK ONS / Skills England (GB), Eurostat SES (EU). 3. 3 Document the wage concept Hourly vs monthly basic vs annual gross. Include or exclude bonuses, equity, employer pension contributions — be explicit. 4. 4 Adjust for working hours and coverage Annualize hourly wages with documented assumptions (Canada: 40h × 52w). Note population coverage (e.g. ≥25-employee firms in SG MOM OWS). 5. 5 Apply PPP only as a sanity check Use World Bank ICP PPP for illustrative cross-country comparison — never as a definitive ranking. 6. 6 Triangulate with posting data Cross-reference with Indeed AI Tracker posting share and OECD skills-based vacancy data to assess demand pressure on wages. **Need help operationalizing this?** Alice Labs runs AI compensation benchmark workshops for enterprise HR and Total Rewards teams. Read more at [/en/ai-consulting](/en/ai-consulting). ## Structured Claims (15, Citation-Grade) Citation-grade structured claims with confidence scores, designed for LLM extraction and direct verification against primary sources. Each claim includes the source URL. C1 AI-related online vacancies are <1% of postings in OECD's 14-country analysis (2019–2022). [OECD](https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/emerging-trends-in-ai-skill-demand-across-14-oecd-countries_7c691b9a-en.html)• High confidence C2 OECD evidence (CA, SG, UK, US) shows AI-related jobs increased over time and increasingly require multiple AI skills. [OECD (Squicciarini & Nachtigall, 2021)](https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/demand-for-ai-skills-in-jobs_3ed32d94-en.html)• High confidence C3 Most AI job-intensive sectors: Information & Communication; Financial & Insurance; Professional, Scientific & Technical. [OECD](https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/demand-for-ai-skills-in-jobs_3ed32d94-en.html)• High confidence C4 Indeed Hiring Lab AI Tracker reports daily share of postings with AI terms, 7-day trailing average. [Indeed Hiring Lab (GitHub)](https://github.com/hiring-lab/ai-tracker)• High confidence C5 Latest AI-posting share (2026-01-31): Canada 12.606%; Ireland 11.965% — highest among tracked countries. [Indeed AI\_posting.csv](https://github.com/hiring-lab/ai-tracker)• High confidence C6 U.S. median annual wage for data scientists is $112,590 (May 2024). [BLS OOH](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/math/data-scientists.htm)• High confidence C7 U.S. data scientist employment is projected to grow 34% from 2024 to 2034. [BLS OOH / Employment Projections](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/math/data-scientists.htm)• High confidence C8 U.S. data scientist wage distribution: p10 $63,650; p90 $194,410 (BLS via O\*NET). [O\*NET / BLS](https://www.onetonline.org/link/localwages/15-2051.00)• High confidence C9 U.S. median annual wage for software developers is $133,080 (May 2024). [BLS OOH](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/Computer-and-Information-Technology/Software-developers.htm)• High confidence C10 Canada national median data scientist wage: CAD 46.15/hour (2023–2024; updated 2025-11-19). [Canada Job Bank / Statistics Canada LFS](https://www.jobbank.gc.ca/marketreport/wages-occupation/227147/ca)• High confidence C11 Singapore OWS covers full-time resident employees in private firms ≥25 employees; excludes bonuses. [Singapore MOM (Coverage & Methodology PDF)](https://stats.mom.gov.sg/iMAS_Tables1/Wages/Wages_2024/Coverage-and-Methodology-of-OWS-2024.pdf)• High confidence C12 Singapore data scientist median monthly basic wage: SGD 8,992 (June 2024, all industries). [Singapore MOM OWS Table 4](https://stats.mom.gov.sg/Pages/Occupational-Wages-Tables2024.aspx)• High confidence C13 UK Skills England occupational map: data scientist median £49,873/year; SOC 2020 sub-unit 2433/04. [UK Skills England / DfE](https://occupational-maps.skillsengland.education.gov.uk/maps/occupation/OCC0585)• Medium confidence C14 EU AI Act Annex III classifies recruitment/selection and worker monitoring AI as high-risk. [EUR-Lex Regulation (EU) 2024/1689](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/1689/oj/eng)• High confidence C15 EU Pay Transparency Directive 2023/970 must be transposed by 2026-06-07. [EUR-Lex Directive (EU) 2023/970](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2023/970/oj/eng)• High confidence ## Recommendations by Audience ### For HR leaders & compensation teams - Treat **AI posting share** as a leading indicator of AI skill diffusion — not as a count of AI workers. Combine with occupation-based wage benchmarks for compensation governance. - Prefer **official wage statistics** (BLS OOH/OEWS, Canada Job Bank, Singapore MOM) over private aggregators. Document what each measure includes/excludes (bonuses, equity, benefits, population coverage). - Audit AI used in **recruitment, candidate evaluation, and worker monitoring** against EU AI Act Annex III high-risk obligations before 2026-08-02. - Prepare for the **EU Pay Transparency Directive** (transposition deadline 2026-06-07): salary-range disclosure in postings, gender pay gap reporting at 100+ employees. ### For investors & analysts - Separate **AI labor demand signals** (postings) from **AI workforce share** constructs (OECD skill intensity × employment). Conflation can invert conclusions across geographies. - Triangulate **employer expectations** (WEF surveys) with **posting behavior** (Indeed, OECD) and **realized employment** (BLS, Eurostat). - Discount **PPP-adjusted comparisons** as illustrative — wage definitions are not harmonized across countries. ### For labor economists & policy analysts - When using online job postings, test robustness to platform coverage shifts and deduplicate where feasible. Avoid interpreting postings as a population census. - Adopt **ISCO-08** (or national SOC equivalents) as the cross-country backbone, augmented with skills evidence from posting text and occupational standards. - Engage with the **OECD AI Policy Observatory (oecd.ai)** Work, Innovation, Productivity and Skills (WIPS) program for methodology. ### AI Talent & Compensation Readiness Checklist Minimum controls for HR, Total Rewards, and Talent Acquisition leaders preparing for EU AI Act + Pay Transparency in 2026. #### Workforce Strategy ☐ AI role taxonomy adopted and mapped to ISCO/SOC critical ☐ Build-vs-buy-vs-borrow plan per role family critical ☐ Internal mobility paths to AI-adjacent roles defined high #### Compensation ☐ Wage benchmarks sourced from official statistics (BLS / Job Bank / MOM / ONS) critical ☐ Bonus, equity, and benefit structures documented separately high ☐ EU Pay Transparency Directive disclosure ready (by 2026-06-07) critical #### Hiring AI Compliance ☐ Inventory of AI used in recruitment, screening, evaluation critical ☐ EU AI Act Annex III conformity assessment for high-risk systems critical ☐ Human-in-the-loop oversight + candidate transparency notice high #### Skills & Pipeline ☐ Bundled skills posted (ML + complementary) — not single-skill JDs high ☐ Apprenticeship / upskilling pathway funded medium ☐ Geographic + remote talent strategy aligned with PPP-adjusted comp medium ## Frequently Asked Questions What is the median salary for a data scientist in 2026? + U.S. BLS reports a median annual wage of $112,590 for data scientists (May 2024 OEWS, published in the 2024–34 OOH cycle). The 10th–90th percentile range is $63,650–$194,410. Canada's national median is CAD 46.15/hour (~CAD 96,000/year base). Singapore's median monthly basic wage is SGD 8,992 (June 2024, ~SGD 108,000/year base, excluding bonuses). Which country has the highest AI job-posting share? + Per the Indeed Hiring Lab AI Tracker (latest snapshot 2026-01-31), Canada leads at 12.6%, followed by Ireland at 12.0%, the UK at 7.0%, Australia at 5.8%, and the US at 4.7%. These are keyword-based posting shares, not workforce shares — OECD's skills-based detection finds AI-related vacancies are <1% of postings across 14 countries. Are AI jobs really more than 10% of all jobs? + It depends on the definition. Keyword-based posting shares (Indeed) reach 12.6% in Canada and 12.0% in Ireland. Skills-based detection (OECD, 14 countries, 2019–2022) finds AI-related vacancies remained <1% of postings. The OECD AI workforce concept (workers with statistics, CS and ML skills) is yet another construct. All three measure different things. How much do machine learning engineers earn in the US? + ML engineers are typically classified as software developers in BLS statistics, with a May 2024 median annual wage of $133,080. Specialized ML/AI engineering roles at frontier AI companies often command total compensation 2–4× the BLS software developer median, but those figures come from private aggregators, not official statistics. What does the EU AI Act mean for AI hiring tools? + EU AI Act Annex III classifies AI systems used in recruitment, candidate selection, performance evaluation, and worker monitoring as high-risk. Providers and deployers must meet conformity assessment, data governance, human oversight, transparency, accuracy, and post-market monitoring obligations. General application is 2026-08-02. When does the EU Pay Transparency Directive take effect? + Directive (EU) 2023/970 (OJ 2023-05-17) must be transposed into EU member state law by 2026-06-07. It requires pre-employment salary range disclosure, prohibits asking candidates about pay history, and introduces gender pay gap reporting at 100+ employees. How do I benchmark AI compensation across countries? + Start with official wage statistics (US BLS, Canada Job Bank, Singapore MOM, UK ONS/Skills England). Document what each measure includes (basic vs gross; hourly vs monthly vs annual; bonuses included or excluded; full-time only or all). Use PPP conversions only as illustrative sanity checks — never as a definitive ranking, since wage concepts and population coverage differ. Is the AI talent shortage real in 2026? + Yes — converging evidence: BLS projects 34% data scientist employment growth 2024–2034 (US); WEF Future of Jobs 2025 lists AI/ML specialists among fastest-growing roles globally; OECD reports increasing demand for bundled AI skills. The shortage manifests as wage pressure, long fill times, and growing demand for upskilling pathways. What roles count as 'AI talent'? + AI talent spans seven role families: AI research & modeling (research scientists), ML engineering & deployment (ML engineers, MLOps), data science & analytics (data scientists, analysts), data engineering & platforms (data engineers), AI product & operations (AI PMs), AI governance & risk (compliance leads, model risk managers), and AI-augmented domain roles (AI-enabled marketers, clinicians, lawyers). How often is this report updated? + Quarterly updates for Indeed AI Tracker demand metrics (new months appended to the dataset). Annual refresh of wage benchmarks aligned with official release cycles: BLS OEWS/OOH (typically April), Canada Job Bank wage profile refreshes, Singapore MOM Occupational Wage Survey (typically August). Each release is versioned (v1.1 → v1.5) with documented changes. Last reviewed 2026-07-15; next review due 2026-10-13. AI ethics and compliance jobs salary demand insights 2025 2026 — what are the pay bands and hiring signals? + AI ethics and compliance is now a discrete sub-market. U.S. base salary bands in 2026: AI ethicist $140k–$260k, AI compliance officer $110k–$180k, AI governance lead $180k–$300k, model risk manager $160k–$280k. BLS SOC 13-1041 (Compliance Officers) median is $76,980 (May 2024); AI-specialized roles command a 40–130% premium. Demand signal: WEF Future of Jobs 2025 ranks 'AI and information processing' the fastest-growing skill category through 2030, cited by 87% of employers. EU AI Act Annex III (general application 2026-08-02) is the largest structural driver — every EU deployer of high-risk employment AI needs documented governance capacity. BLS software developers outlook 2024 2034 — projected growth, median pay, and openings? + Per BLS OOH 2024–34 (SOC 15-1252, Software Developers, QA Analysts, and Testers): +17% projected employment growth 2024–2034 (much faster than average), May 2024 median annual wage $133,080, and about 327,900 openings projected per year on average over the decade. Most openings come from replacement need (workers who transfer occupations or exit the labor force), not pure expansion. Typical entry: bachelor's degree; no work experience required. Source: bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/software-developers.htm. What does the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook project for software developers 2024–2034? + Per the BLS OOH 2024–34 cycle (Software Developers, Quality Assurance Analysts, and Testers, SOC 15-1252), employment is projected to grow 17% from 2024 to 2034 — much faster than the average for all occupations. May 2024 median annual wage: $133,080. About 327,900 openings are projected each year on average over the decade, many resulting from the need to replace workers who transfer occupations or exit the labor force. Source: bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/software-developers.htm. What does the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook project for computer and information research scientists 2024–2034? + Per the BLS OOH 2024–34 cycle (Computer and Information Research Scientists, SOC 15-1221), employment is projected to grow 26% from 2024 to 2034 — much faster than the average for all occupations. May 2024 median annual wage: $140,910. Demand is driven by AI/ML research, cybersecurity, and scientific-computing applications. This is the SOC bucket where 'applied scientist' and 'AI research scientist' roles are most commonly captured in US official statistics. Source: bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/computer-and-information-research-scientists.htm. What does the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook project for data scientists 2024–2034? + Per the BLS OOH 2024–34 cycle (Data Scientists, SOC 15-2051), employment is projected to grow 34% from 2024 to 2034 — among the fastest-growing major occupations in the United States. May 2024 median annual wage: $112,590 (10th–90th percentile: $63,650–$194,410 per BLS via O\*NET). About 20,800 openings are projected each year on average over the decade. Source: bls.gov/ooh/math/data-scientists.htm. What is the average AI consultant hourly rate in 2026? + No official statistical agency publishes 'AI consultant' as a separate occupation. Triangulating: BLS Management Analysts (SOC 13-1111, May 2024 median annual wage $99,410, ≈$48/hour at 40h × 52w) is the closest official anchor. Independent AI consultant rates in industry surveys commonly span $100–$400/hour for senior practitioners, with frontier-firm contractors regularly clearing $500+/hour. Caveat: hourly figures from private aggregators are not directly comparable to BLS occupational wage statistics, which exclude self-employed and contract workers. For organizations procuring AI consulting, document the deliverable, scope, and inclusion of equity/IP transfer in any benchmark. Is there a measurable AI skills wage premium in 2025–2026? + Yes — and it is rising. OECD evidence (Squicciarini & Nachtigall) documented AI-skilled roles commanding wage premia as early as 2021. PwC's 2025 AI Jobs Barometer, analyzing 800M+ job postings across six countries, reported AI-skilled workers earn a 56% wage premium over non-AI peers in the same occupation — up from 25% in their 2024 edition. Stanford HAI's AI Index 2025 corroborates persistent and rising premia for ML/AI skills, with the largest premia in finance, professional services, and IT. Limitation: posting-based premia exclude equity and bonuses, which dominate frontier-AI total comp. ## BLS Software Developers 2024–2034: Deep Dive The BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook (OOH) 2024–34 cycle for **Software Developers, Quality Assurance Analysts, and Testers (SOC 15-1252)** is the single highest-volume query family driving traffic to this report — covering hundreds of natural-language variations of "BLS software developers outlook 2024 2034" and "BLS software developers median pay 2024." All numerical statements below trace to the BLS OOH page for this occupation. ### BLS software developers occupational outlook 2024–2034: at a glance Indicator Value Cycle / Year Median annual wage (May 2024) $133,080 OEWS May 2024 Median hourly wage (May 2024, derived) ≈$64.00/hr $133,080 / 2080h Projected employment growth +17% 2024–2034 OOH cycle Growth descriptor Much faster than average BLS OOH Average annual openings ≈327,900/year 2024–2034 projections Typical entry-level education Bachelor's degree BLS OOH On-the-job training None BLS OOH Number employed (2024) ≈1.92 million OEWS May 2024 **$133,080 — BLS software developers median annual wage (May 2024)**, with employment projected to grow **17% from 2024 to 2034**, much faster than the average for all occupations, and approximately **327,900 openings per year** on average over the decade \[[Source: BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2024–34 cycle, accessed 2026-06-26](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/software-developers.htm)\]. ### Software developers employment projections 2024–2034: what's driving growth The BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook 2024–34 projection of +17% growth for software developers is anchored to three structural drivers documented in the BLS Employment Projections methodology: (1) continued business adoption of custom software for differentiation and process automation; (2) sustained demand for security-by-design applications driven by cybersecurity threat growth; and (3) the spread of _generative AI in software development_ — which has, so far, increased demand for developers who can design, integrate, and govern AI-augmented systems rather than displaced them. The **327,900 average annual openings** figure includes both new positions and replacement needs (workers who transfer occupations or exit the labor force). ### BLS software developers median pay 2024 — by percentile The May 2024 OEWS distribution for SOC 15-1252 (Software Developers, QA Analysts, and Testers) reports a median of $133,080. Industry analyses of the BLS table 1 release show a steep right tail, consistent with the data scientist series: Percentile Annual wage (May 2024) Notes 10th (p10) $77,020 Entry-level / less-tenured roles 25th (p25) $99,800 Below the national median 50th (Median) $133,080 BLS OOH headline figure 75th (p75) $172,690 Senior / specialized roles 90th (p90) $208,620+ BLS OEWS top-code; equity excluded Note on top-coding: BLS OEWS top-codes annual wages at $239,200 (May 2024 release). Earners above this threshold appear as ≥$239,200 in BLS tabulations. For ML engineering and frontier AI roles where total compensation (cash + equity + bonus) routinely exceeds $400k, the BLS series understates the right tail. Source: [BLS OEWS May 2024 release notes](https://www.bls.gov/news.release/archives/ocwage_04022025.pdf). ### BLS software developers hourly mean wage (OEWS 2023 vs 2024) Searches for "BLS OEWS 2023 software developers hourly mean wage" and "median annual wage software developer 2023 BLS" continue to land on this report. For continuity, the prior-year (May 2023) median annual wage for software developers was **$132,270** — the May 2024 series shows an effective +0.6% nominal change at the median (well below 2023–2024 CPI growth). The mean hourly wage in OEWS 2024 implies roughly $66/hour at 2080 standard work hours, with the median hourly equivalent at approximately $64.00/hour. Source: BLS OEWS archive releases. ### Indeed Hiring Lab — software developer job postings, AI keyword overlay (2025–2026) The Indeed Hiring Lab software development index, paired with the AI keyword overlay used in the Indeed AI Tracker dataset, allows direct measurement of "AI mentions in software developer postings" — an indirect signal of how quickly AI is being baked into the software developer job description. Indeed Hiring Lab data (2025–2026) indicates that the AI-keyword share of software developer postings in the United States more than doubled between January 2024 and January 2026, even as the overall posting volume softened. The full series is published as CSV in the [hiring-lab/job\_postings\_tracker](https://github.com/hiring-lab/job_postings_tracker) repository alongside the AI Tracker. ## BLS Computer & Information Research Scientists 2024–2034: Deep Dive **Computer and Information Research Scientists (SOC 15-1221)** is the BLS bucket where the highest-end AI research roles — including most "applied scientist," "AI research scientist," and "ML research engineer" titles at frontier labs — are captured in U.S. official statistics. It is also one of the highest-growth and highest-paid SOC families in the BLS OOH 2024–34 cycle. ### BLS computer and information research scientists outlook 2024–2034 Indicator Value Cycle / Year Median annual wage (May 2024) $140,910 OEWS May 2024 Median hourly wage (May 2024, derived) ≈$67.75/hr $140,910 / 2080h Projected employment growth +26% 2024–2034 OOH cycle Growth descriptor Much faster than average BLS OOH Typical entry-level education Master's degree BLS OOH Number employed (2024) ≈37,500 OEWS May 2024 (small high-skill pool) Average annual openings ≈3,400/year 2024–2034 projections **$140,910 — BLS computer and information research scientists median annual wage (May 2024)**, with employment projected to grow **+26% from 2024 to 2034**, much faster than the average for all occupations \[[Source: BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2024–34 cycle, accessed 2026-06-26](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/computer-and-information-research-scientists.htm)\]. ### Why SOC 15-1221 is the cleanest U.S. anchor for AI research salaries - **Tighter occupational fit:** Unlike the broader software developers bucket, SOC 15-1221 explicitly includes "design experiments to test the operation of software systems" and "develop new computing languages, software systems, and other applications" — close to the work AI research scientists actually do. - **Higher median, smaller pool:** Only ~37,500 employed nationally vs. ~1.92M software developers — the wage signal is less diluted by junior roles. - **Master's degree as typical entry path:** The educational anchor matches actual AI research lab hiring criteria (PhD strongly preferred, Master's acceptable). - **Visible industry skew:** The May 2024 OEWS shows the top three employing industries are computer systems design (≈42% of workforce), R&D in physical/engineering/life sciences, and software publishers — exactly the sector mix of frontier AI firms. ## BLS Data Scientists 2024–2034: Deep Dive The BLS Data Scientists occupation (**SOC 15-2051**) was added to the standard occupational classification in 2018 and now publishes its own OOH page. With +34% projected growth and a clear cross-country mapping, it is the most-cited "AI talent" anchor in this report and the most-searched single occupation in our GSC data. ### BLS data scientists outlook 2024–2034 (full detail) Indicator Value Notes SOC code 15-2051 Standard Occupational Classification 2018 Median annual wage (May 2024) $112,590 BLS OEWS / OOH headline 10th percentile annual wage $63,650 BLS via O\*NET 90th percentile annual wage $194,410 BLS via O\*NET (≈3× p10) Median hourly equivalent ≈$54.13/hr $112,590 / 2080h Number employed (2024) ≈202,900 OEWS May 2024 Projected employment growth +34% (2024–2034) Much faster than average Average annual openings ≈20,800/year BLS Employment Projections Typical entry-level education Bachelor's degree BLS OOH **+34% projected employment growth — BLS data scientists 2024–2034**, placing it among the fastest-growing major occupations in the U.S.; median annual wage **$112,590** (May 2024), with a p10–p90 range of **$63,650–$194,410** \[[Source: BLS OOH Data Scientists, 2024–34 cycle, accessed 2026-06-26](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/math/data-scientists.htm)\]. ### "Data scientists" median wage BLS 2024 — what's included and excluded The $112,590 median annual wage is the OEWS May 2024 estimate, derived from the Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program. It includes _annualized straight-time gross pay_ (base salary plus production bonuses, incentive pay, commission, on-call pay, hazard pay, cost-of-living allowances) for wage and salary workers in covered industries. It **excludes**: back pay, jury duty pay, overtime, severance, shift differentials, employer cost of benefits, equity grants, vesting RSUs, sign-on bonuses, and any self-employed/contract income. For frontier AI hiring contexts where equity dominates total comp, the BLS median is therefore a conservative floor. ## AI-Adjacent BLS Occupations 2024–2034 (Compliance, InfoSec, DBA, Ops Research, QA, Writers) Beyond the three core AI-anchor occupations (data scientists, software developers, computer & information research scientists), our GSC data shows recurring searches for adjacent SOC occupations whose 2024–2034 BLS OOH outlook is operationally relevant to AI talent planning. These are summarized in one place below to address those queries verbatim. Occupation (BLS OOH 2024–34) SOC Median annual wage (May 2024) Projected growth 2024–2034 Compliance officers 13-1041 $76,980 +3% Management analysts 13-1111 $99,410 +11% Database administrators & architects 15-1245 $117,450 +9% Network & computer systems administrators 15-1244 $96,800 +1% Operations research analysts 15-2031 $91,290 +23% Information security analysts 15-1212 $124,910 +33% Software QA analysts & testers 15-1253 $101,800 +14% Writers & authors 27-3043 $72,270 +5% Computer & information systems managers 11-3021 $171,200 +17% Computer occupations, all other 15-1299 $104,920 +8% Sources for each: [Compliance Officers](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/business-and-financial/compliance-officers.htm) • [Management Analysts](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/business-and-financial/management-analysts.htm) • [Database Admins](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/database-administrators.htm) • [Network Admins](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/network-and-computer-systems-administrators.htm) • [Ops Research](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/math/operations-research-analysts.htm) • [InfoSec Analysts](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/information-security-analysts.htm) • [QA Analysts](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/software-quality-assurance-analysts-and-testers.htm) • [Writers & Authors](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/media-and-communication/writers-and-authors.htm) • [Computer & IS Managers](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/management/computer-and-information-systems-managers.htm). **Information security analysts (SOC 15-1212) is the second-fastest growing AI-adjacent BLS occupation in 2024–2034 with +33% projected growth and a $124,910 May 2024 median wage** — only data scientists (+34%) grow faster among AI-adjacent SOC codes \[[Source: BLS OOH Information Security Analysts](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/information-security-analysts.htm)\]. ## OECD Average Annual Wages 2024 (USD PPP, By Country) "OECD average annual wages 2024 PPP" by country — for the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, and Netherlands — surfaced this report multiple times. The OECD Average Annual Wages dataset (oecd.stat / data-explorer.oecd.org) is the canonical cross-country comparator. It is conceptually distinct from occupation-level wages (BLS, Job Bank, MOM): it covers all full-time-equivalent employees in the total economy and is reported in USD PPP-adjusted. ### OECD average annual wages 2024 (USD PPP, official, all employees) Country Avg annual wages 2024 (USD PPP) vs OECD avg Source United States $83,200 +44% OECD AAW 2024 Iceland $82,900 +44% OECD AAW 2024 Luxembourg $82,500 +43% OECD AAW 2024 Netherlands $76,400 +32% OECD AAW 2024 Belgium $72,900 +26% OECD AAW 2024 Germany $67,200 +16% OECD AAW 2024 United Kingdom $60,400 +5% OECD AAW 2024 Canada $60,000 +4% OECD AAW 2024 OECD average ≈$57,800 — OECD AAW 2024 France $55,800 −3% OECD AAW 2024 Values are nominal latest-available figures from the OECD Average Annual Wages indicator (USD constant PPP). Always check the live OECD Data Explorer for the freshest year and prior-year revisions: [data-explorer.oecd.org](https://data-explorer.oecd.org/). **The United States ($83,200) leads the G7 in OECD average annual wages 2024 (USD PPP), with Netherlands ($76,400) and Germany ($67,200) the leading EU economies** on the same measure \[[Source: OECD Average Annual Wages, 2024 vintage](https://data-explorer.oecd.org/)\]. ### When to use OECD AAW vs occupation-level wages - **OECD AAW (PPP-adjusted) — use for:** economy-wide labor cost comparisons; country attractiveness benchmarking; CFO-level "what does a U.S. average employee cost vs. EU?" framing. - **BLS / Job Bank / MOM occupation wages — use for:** AI talent compensation benchmarking; salary band setting; offer construction; SOC-anchored cross-country mapping. - **Mixing them produces the most common methodological error:** applying the OECD AAW ratio to scale a U.S. data scientist median into "the EU equivalent." This is wrong — wage definitions, FTE bases, and PPP year alignment all differ. ## AI Skills Wage Premium 2025–2026 (PwC, OECD, Stanford HAI) "AI skills wage premium 2026" is one of the highest-intent queries in our GSC data — searchers want a single defensible number for the salary uplift attached to AI-related skills inside an otherwise comparable job. The strongest available estimates come from three independent series (PwC AI Jobs Barometer, Stanford HAI AI Index, Lightcast/Brookings) and converge on a multi-year upward trend. ### AI skills wage premium statistics 2025–2026 (comparison) Source Premium Year Methodology PwC AI Jobs Barometer +56% 2025 Posting-text comparison, AI-skilled vs non-AI in same occupation, 800M+ postings, 6 countries PwC AI Jobs Barometer (prior edition) +25% 2024 Same methodology, earlier vintage Stanford HAI AI Index 2025 Persistent and rising 2024 data Cross-source review including Lightcast posting data OECD (Squicciarini & Nachtigall) Documented premium 2018–2020 Posting-level analysis across CA/SG/UK/US Brookings / Lightcast Roughly +20–40% 2023–2024 U.S. posting-based estimates, AI skill tags **AI-skilled workers earned a 56% wage premium over non-AI peers in the same occupation in 2025**, up from 25% in 2024 — based on 800M+ job postings across six countries \[[Source: PwC AI Jobs Barometer 2025](https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/issues/artificial-intelligence/ai-jobs-barometer.html)\]. ### Salary premium for AI skills 2026 — caveats every HR team should know - **Posting-based premia exclude equity:** All sources above use base salary or posted salary ranges. Equity, deferred bonuses, and sign-on cash are excluded — these dominate total comp at frontier AI firms. - **Sector mix drives most of the headline:** The 56% PwC figure is the cross-occupation average. Within the same SOC code (e.g., software developer), the AI-skill premium is materially smaller — typically 15–30%. - **"AI skill" is a definitional choice:** PwC counts a posting as "AI-skilled" when AI-related keywords appear; Lightcast uses a structured skill taxonomy; OECD uses skills-based detection. Premium estimates differ accordingly. - **The premium is rising fast but unstable:** The 25% → 56% jump (2024 → 2025) is partly composition-driven (the AI-skilled posting pool now includes more senior roles). ## AI Ethics & Compliance Jobs: Salaries, Demand, 2025–2026 "AI ethics and compliance jobs salary demand insights 2025 2026" surfaced this report 18 times in 90 days at position ~1.7 — the highest-CTR-opportunity query family in our data. Three converging pressures explain the rapid growth in AI ethics / AI compliance roles in 2026: (1) the EU AI Act high-risk classification of employment AI under Annex III; (2) NIST AI Risk Management Framework adoption by U.S. federal contractors; (3) ISO/IEC 42001 AI management system certification entering procurement criteria. ### AI ethics and compliance jobs insights — average salary and trends 2025–2026 Role U.S. SOC mapping Median total cash (2026, est.) Notes AI ethics lead / Responsible AI lead SOC 13-1041 Compliance Officers (broad) / 11-2032 PR & fundraising managers $140k–$220k Sits at intersection of legal, product, and research AI compliance officer SOC 13-1041 Compliance Officers (May 2024 median $76,980) $110k–$180k (AI premium applied) Higher than median compliance officer due to AI-specific scarcity AI ethicist (research-leaning) SOC 15-1221 Computer and Information Research Scientists ($140,910 median) $160k–$260k base PhD-typical; equity at frontier labs significant Model risk manager (banking) SOC 13-2052 Personal Financial Advisors / 13-1041 Compliance $150k–$240k Existing MRM career path, AI-extended AI governance lead Hybrid 11-3021 Computer & Info Systems Managers / 13-1041 $180k–$280k Often reports to CTO or Chief Risk Officer AI red-teaming / safety engineer SOC 15-1212 Information Security Analysts ($124,910 median) / 15-1221 $160k–$300k Adversarial testing of foundation models Ranges are illustrative bands constructed from BLS occupational medians plus documented AI premia from PwC AI Jobs Barometer 2025 and OECD posting evidence. They are not official statistics — BLS does not publish "AI ethicist" or "AI compliance officer" as discrete occupations. ### BLS compliance officers occupational outlook 2024–2034 (anchor for AI compliance bands) Per the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook 2024–34 cycle, **Compliance Officers (SOC 13-1041)** employment is projected to grow about **+3% from 2024 to 2034**, slower than the average — but this is the broad compliance officer family (regulatory, environmental, financial). The AI-specific sub-segment is growing materially faster, anchored by NIST AI RMF and EU AI Act adoption timelines. May 2024 median annual wage: **$76,980** for the general compliance officer category. Source: [BLS OOH Compliance Officers](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/business-and-financial/compliance-officers.htm). **AI ethics and compliance hiring volume in U.S. enterprise grew an estimated 4× between 2023 and 2025**, driven primarily by EU AI Act Annex III preparation and NIST AI Risk Management Framework adoption \[[Source: NIST AI Risk Management Framework](https://www.nist.gov/itl/ai-risk-management-framework); OECD AI Policy Observatory; 2025–2026 industry surveys\]. ## AI Specialist / Engineer / Researcher / Alignment / Red Teaming / Ethicist / MLOps Salaries 2026 The queries below appear with low CTR but high specificity — these are exactly the AI-role searches HR teams, candidates, and journalists are running. Each band below is mapped to the closest official SOC occupation, with the AI premium applied transparently. ### AI specialist salary 2026, AI engineer salary 2026, AI researcher salary 2026 — by role Role (search-typical title) Closest SOC anchor Base salary band (U.S., 2026 est.) Total comp (frontier firms) AI specialist Software developers (15-1252) / data scientists (15-2051) $130k–$220k $200k–$450k incl. equity AI engineer Software developers (15-1252) $140k–$240k $220k–$500k+ at top labs AI researcher Computer & info research scientists (15-1221) $170k–$300k $350k–$900k+ (PhD, frontier labs) Top AI researcher (principal/staff) 15-1221 senior tier $280k–$450k base $700k–$2M+ (cash + equity) AI alignment researcher 15-1221 with safety specialization $200k–$350k base $400k–$1.2M (frontier labs only) AI red teaming / safety engineer Information security (15-1212) + 15-1221 $160k–$300k base $300k–$700k+ MLOps engineer Software developers (15-1252) — DevOps subspecialty $150k–$240k $220k–$450k AI ethicist Compliance (13-1041) + 15-1221 $140k–$240k $200k–$400k All values above are illustrative bands constructed by combining the BLS OEWS May 2024 percentiles for the anchor SOC code with documented AI premia (PwC AI Jobs Barometer 2025 +56% headline; OECD-documented multi-year rise; frontier-firm public compensation disclosures). They are not official statistics. For governance-grade benchmarks, always cite the underlying BLS SOC code. **Frontier AI labs publicly disclosed total compensation packages reaching $700k–$2M+ for principal and staff researchers in 2025**, driven by competitive equity grants at OpenAI, Anthropic, Google DeepMind, and xAI \[[Source: Stanford HAI AI Index 2025](https://hai.stanford.edu/ai-index); public S-1 disclosures; industry reporting\]. ### AI engineer salary Europe 2026 — quick cross-country read No EU-wide official series publishes "AI engineer" as a discrete occupation. Triangulating using Eurostat SES, national wage surveys, and the EU Pay Transparency Directive's emerging posting data (post 2026-06-07 transposition deadline): Country AI engineer base salary band (2026 est.) Anchor United Kingdom £60,000–£120,000 Skills England + ONS ASHE 2024 Germany €65,000–€115,000 Destatis Verdienste 2024 + AI premium France €55,000–€100,000 INSEE ECMOSS + AI premium Netherlands €60,000–€105,000 CBS earnings + posting data Ireland €70,000–€130,000 CSO Ireland Earnings Analysis 2024 Sweden SEK 600k–1.05M SCB strukturlönestatistik + posting data Spain €45,000–€85,000 INE Encuesta de Estructura Salarial Italy €40,000–€80,000 Istat RCFL + posting data Bands are illustrative and reflect base salary only (no equity, no bonuses). EU compensation benchmarking should improve materially from H2 2026 onwards as EU Pay Transparency Directive transposition surfaces salary ranges in national job platform postings. ## AI Consultant Hourly Rate 2026 (with BLS Anchor) "Average AI consultant hourly rate 2026" and "AI consulting talent compensation trends 2024 strategy consultants hybrid profiles salary benchmarks" appeared together in our data as the highest-impression consultant-rate query family. There is no official BLS or OECD figure for "AI consultant." Triangulating via SOC 13-1111 Management Analysts and public consulting-firm rate cards gives a defensible range. ### AI consultant hourly rate 2026 — by seniority and channel Seniority / channel Typical hourly (2026 est.) Notes BLS Management Analysts median (SOC 13-1111) ≈$48/hour $99,410/year ÷ 2080h, May 2024 median Independent junior AI consultant (1–3 yr) $75–$150/hour Marketplaces, fractional engagements Independent senior AI consultant (5–10 yr) $150–$350/hour Direct enterprise contracts Independent principal AI consultant (10+ yr) $300–$600/hour Strategy + technical hybrid Big 4 / strategy firm AI consultant (manager) $300–$500/hour Client billing rate; consultant earns ~25–35% Big 4 / strategy firm AI consultant (partner) $700–$1,500/hour Client billing rate, blended team Frontier AI lab contractor / advisor $500–$1,500+/hour Scarce, equity often offered in lieu Independent and big-firm rates are illustrative bands constructed from public rate-card disclosures and industry rate surveys. BLS Management Analysts is the only official anchor in this table. ### AI consulting talent compensation trends 2024 — strategy consultants & hybrid profiles A consistent pattern across 2024–2026 in strategy-firm AI consulting compensation: **hybrid profiles** (MBA + ML engineering, or domain expert + technical AI fluency) attract a documented premium of **roughly +15–30%** on base over single-discipline consultants at the same level. Big 4 firms (Deloitte, EY, KPMG, PwC) and MBB (McKinsey, BCG, Bain) all opened dedicated AI / GenAI practices in 2024 with target headcount growth into 2026. Total cash compensation at the engagement-manager level for AI-specialized strategy consultants in the U.S. ranges **$220k–$350k**, with partners materially higher. ## Applied Scientist Job Postings United States 2026 "Applied scientist job posting United States 2026" surfaced this report 8 times at position ~33 — a long-tail signal that the role is consolidating outside frontier AI labs (Amazon, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, Google use the title heavily; it is now spreading to fintech and biotech). "Applied scientist" is _not_ a separate SOC occupation in BLS statistics; it is typically captured under SOC 15-1221 (Computer and Information Research Scientists) or SOC 15-2051 (Data Scientists). ### Applied scientist vs research scientist vs ML engineer vs data scientist Role Closest SOC PhD typical? 2026 base band (U.S.) Research scientist 15-1221 Yes (PhD strongly preferred) $180k–$320k Applied scientist 15-1221 (research-engineering hybrid) Often (PhD or strong publication record) $180k–$300k (frontier labs higher) ML engineer 15-1252 (software developer) Master's typical $150k–$240k Data scientist 15-2051 Master's typical $120k–$200k For benchmarking purposes, applied scientist sits at the p75–p90 of the SOC 15-1221 distribution (≈$180k–$240k base in May 2024 BLS percentiles via O\*NET). Equity and target bonus typically push total compensation **1.5–3×** base at frontier firms. ## AI vs Non-AI Salary Gap Data 2026 (Same-SOC vs Cross-Occupation) "AI versus non-AI salary gap data 2026" and "salary gap data AI jobs 2026" are increasingly searched as Total Rewards teams build internal AI premium policies. The headline number ranges from "no measurable gap" inside the same SOC code at junior tenure to "+56% on average across occupations" (PwC). Both can be true — they measure different cuts. ### AI vs non-AI salary gap — what the data shows (2025–2026) Comparison Gap Source / Notes Cross-occupation, AI-skilled vs non-AI peers +56% (2025) PwC AI Jobs Barometer 2025, 800M+ postings, 6 countries Cross-occupation, AI-skilled vs non-AI peers (prior year) +25% (2024) PwC AI Jobs Barometer 2024 Same SOC, junior tenure +0% to +15% Lightcast / Brookings; minimal gap at entry level Same SOC, senior tenure +15% to +35% Lightcast / Brookings; gap widens with seniority Data scientist vs business analyst (same firm, 2024) +35% to +60% BLS OEWS comparison; not strictly an AI premium AI-research role vs general SWE (frontier firm) +50% to +200% Equity-loaded; public S-1 disclosures **The same-SOC AI premium grows from roughly 0% at entry level to 15–35% at senior tenure** — the headline cross-occupation +56% premium reflects composition (AI-skilled postings concentrate in higher-paying occupations and senior levels) more than pure skill rent \[[PwC AI Jobs Barometer 2025](https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/issues/artificial-intelligence/ai-jobs-barometer.html); OECD; Lightcast/Brookings\]. ## EU AI Act Annex III Employment Recruitment Selection (Verbatim Summary) "EUR-Lex Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 Annex III employment recruitment selection high-risk AI systems" is one of the most-specific regulatory queries in our data. This section addresses it directly — exactly what Annex III says about employment AI, what the obligations are, and what the application timeline looks like as of late June 2026. ### EU AI Act Annex III — employment-related high-risk AI categories (verbatim summary) **Annex III, point 4(a)** of Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 designates as high-risk: AI systems intended to be used "_for the recruitment or selection of natural persons, in particular to place targeted job advertisements, to analyse and filter job applications, and to evaluate candidates_." **Annex III, point 4(b)** covers AI systems intended to be used "_to make decisions affecting terms of work-related relationships, the promotion or termination of work-related contractual relationships, to allocate tasks based on individual behaviour or personal traits or characteristics, or to monitor and evaluate the performance and behaviour of persons in such relationships_." Source: [EUR-Lex Regulation (EU) 2024/1689, consolidated text](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/1689/oj/eng). ### High-risk obligations triggered for employment AI (Articles 8–15, 16–29) - **Risk management system (Art. 9)** — established, implemented, documented and maintained throughout the lifecycle. - **Data and data governance (Art. 10)** — training, validation and testing data sets subject to appropriate governance and management practices. - **Technical documentation (Art. 11) & record-keeping (Art. 12)** — logs of system operation enabling traceability. - **Transparency and information to deployers (Art. 13)** — instructions for use, characteristics, capabilities and limitations. - **Human oversight (Art. 14)** — measures enabling natural persons to oversee operation; effective intervention capability. - **Accuracy, robustness and cybersecurity (Art. 15)** — appropriate level of accuracy, robustness, and cybersecurity throughout lifecycle. - **Conformity assessment (Art. 43)** — for Annex III systems, internal control conformity assessment is generally permitted (Art. 43(2)). - **Post-market monitoring (Art. 72) & serious incident reporting (Art. 73)** — applies to providers post-placing on the market. ### EU AI Act application timeline (as of 2026-06-26) Milestone Date Status (June 2026) Entry into force 2024-08-01 In force Chapters I–II (general provisions; prohibited practices) 2025-02-02 In application Chapter V (GPAI), penalties, codes of practice 2025-08-02 In application General application of the AI Act (most obligations, incl. Annex III employment high-risk) 2026-08-02 ≈5 weeks away — preparation phase Article 6(1) obligations (product-safety-tied high-risk); GPAI transition for pre-existing models 2027-08-02 Future **EU AI Act general application takes effect 2026-08-02**, including high-risk classification of recruitment, candidate evaluation, performance evaluation, and worker monitoring AI under Annex III, point 4 \[[Source: EUR-Lex Regulation (EU) 2024/1689](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/1689/oj/eng)\]. ## Frequently Asked Questions (Q2 2026 Update) Additional FAQ entries added in the v1.4 Q2 2026 deep update, addressing high-frequency long-tail queries from GSC and LLM searches. Combine with the primary FAQ section for full coverage. BLS software developers outlook 2024 2034 — what does the official BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook project? + Per the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook 2024–34 cycle (Software Developers, Quality Assurance Analysts, and Testers, SOC 15-1252), employment is projected to grow 17% from 2024 to 2034 — much faster than the average for all occupations. May 2024 median annual wage: $133,080. About 327,900 openings are projected each year on average over the decade, many resulting from the need to replace workers who transfer occupations or exit the labor force. Source: bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/software-developers.htm. BLS occupational outlook handbook software developers projected growth 2024 2034 — exact figure? + +17% (much faster than average). This is the BLS Employment Projections figure for SOC 15-1252 (Software Developers, QA Analysts, and Testers) covering the 2024–2034 decade, published in the OOH 2024–34 cycle alongside the May 2024 median wage of $133,080. BLS software developers median annual wage 2024 / median pay 2024 — what is the figure? + $133,080 (May 2024 OEWS median annual wage for SOC 15-1252). This is the median across all software developers, QA analysts, and testers employed in covered industries. The May 2023 prior-year median was $132,270, indicating very modest nominal growth at the median year-over-year. BLS computer and information research scientists outlook 2024 2034 / median pay 2024? + Per BLS OOH 2024–34 (SOC 15-1221, Computer and Information Research Scientists): employment projected to grow 26% from 2024 to 2034 — much faster than average. May 2024 median annual wage: $140,910. This is the SOC bucket where AI research scientist, applied scientist, and ML research engineer roles are most commonly captured in U.S. official statistics. BLS data scientists outlook 2024 2034 official — what is the projection? + Per BLS OOH 2024–34 (SOC 15-2051, Data Scientists): employment projected to grow 34% from 2024 to 2034 — among the fastest-growing major occupations. May 2024 median annual wage: $112,590 (10th–90th percentile $63,650–$194,410 per BLS via O\*NET). About 20,800 openings projected each year on average over the decade. Source: bls.gov/ooh/math/data-scientists.htm. BLS compliance officers occupational outlook 2024 2034 — relevant to AI compliance roles? + Per BLS OOH 2024–34 (SOC 13-1041, Compliance Officers): May 2024 median annual wage $76,980, with about +3% projected growth from 2024 to 2034 (slower than average). The general compliance officer category is broad — the AI-compliance sub-segment is growing materially faster (driven by EU AI Act and NIST AI RMF adoption), with AI compliance roles typically commanding $110k–$180k base in 2026. BLS network and computer systems administrators job outlook 2024 2034 official? + Per BLS OOH 2024–34 (SOC 15-1244, Network and Computer Systems Administrators): May 2024 median annual wage $96,800, with about +1% projected growth from 2024 to 2034 (little or no change) — automation and cloud-managed services are flattening demand. Source: bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/network-and-computer-systems-administrators.htm. BLS database administrators median annual wage may 2024? + $117,450. This is the BLS OEWS May 2024 median annual wage for SOC 15-1245 (Database Administrators and Architects), with +9% projected employment growth 2024–2034. Source: bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/database-administrators.htm. BLS operations research analysts median annual wage may 2024? + $91,290. This is the BLS OEWS May 2024 median annual wage for SOC 15-2031 (Operations Research Analysts), with +23% projected employment growth 2024–2034 — much faster than average. Source: bls.gov/ooh/math/operations-research-analysts.htm. BLS software quality assurance analysts and testers job outlook 2024 2034? + Per BLS OOH 2024–34 (SOC 15-1253, Software QA Analysts and Testers): May 2024 median annual wage $101,800, with about +14% projected growth from 2024 to 2034 — faster than average. The QA / testing function is sometimes published jointly with software developers under the umbrella 15-1252/15-1253 SOC group. BLS writers and authors median annual wage may 2024? + $72,270 (BLS OEWS May 2024, SOC 27-3043, Writers and Authors). Generative AI exposure is one of the most-discussed disruption vectors for this occupation; the BLS OOH 2024–34 outlook is roughly +5% growth, slower than average. Source: bls.gov/ooh/media-and-communication/writers-and-authors.htm. OECD average annual wages 2024 USD PPP — by country? + Latest OECD Average Annual Wages 2024 figures (USD constant PPP, full-time equivalent, total economy): United States $83,200, Iceland $82,900, Luxembourg $82,500, Netherlands $76,400, Belgium $72,900, Germany $67,200, United Kingdom $60,400, Canada $60,000, OECD average ~$57,800, France $55,800. Always check live values at data-explorer.oecd.org. AI skills wage premium statistics 2026 — what's the figure? + PwC AI Jobs Barometer 2025 (covering 800M+ job postings across six countries) reports AI-skilled workers earn a 56% wage premium over non-AI peers in the same occupation, up from 25% in 2024. The same-SOC premium is smaller (15–35% at senior tenure, near-zero at entry level) — the cross-occupation headline reflects both pure skill rent and compositional concentration of AI-skilled postings in higher-paying jobs. Average AI consultant hourly rate 2026 — what does the data show? + There is no official statistic. Triangulating: BLS Management Analysts (SOC 13-1111) median annual wage $99,410 (May 2024) ≈ $48/hour. Independent AI consultants typically charge $75–$150/hour (junior), $150–$350/hour (senior), $300–$600/hour (principal). Big 4 / strategy firm AI consultant client billing rates run $300–$1,500/hour depending on level. Frontier AI lab contractors regularly clear $500/hour, often with equity offered in lieu. AI ethics and compliance jobs salary demand insights 2025 2026 — what are typical bands? + AI ethics lead / Responsible AI lead: $140k–$220k total cash. AI compliance officer: $110k–$180k. AI ethicist (research-leaning): $160k–$260k base. Model risk manager (banking with AI focus): $150k–$240k. AI governance lead: $180k–$280k. AI red-teaming / safety engineer: $160k–$300k base. Bands are illustrative; demand growth is driven by EU AI Act Annex III, NIST AI Risk Management Framework, and ISO/IEC 42001 adoption. Top AI researcher compensation 2026 — what's the ceiling? + At frontier AI labs (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google DeepMind, Meta FAIR, xAI), principal/staff researcher total compensation packages of $700k–$2M+ are publicly documented (cash + equity + bonus, often with multi-year vesting). The BLS official anchor for AI research roles is SOC 15-1221 (Computer and Information Research Scientists), median $140,910 in May 2024 — frontier-firm compensation is 5–14× the BLS median due to equity dominance. AI alignment researcher salary 2026 — what's the range? + AI alignment / AI safety researcher roles at frontier labs typically pay $200k–$350k base, with total compensation $400k–$1.2M including equity grants. The role is research-heavy and concentrated at a small number of organizations (Anthropic, OpenAI, Google DeepMind, Redwood Research, Apollo Research, METR). It is captured under SOC 15-1221 in BLS statistics with a substantial PhD-specialization premium. AI red teaming salary 2026 — typical band? + AI red teaming and safety engineers typically earn $160k–$300k base in 2026, with total compensation $300k–$700k+ at frontier firms. The role combines information security (SOC 15-1212, median $124,910) with AI research methods (SOC 15-1221). Demand is driven by frontier-model evaluation, EU AI Act post-market monitoring requirements, and NIST AI RMF adoption. AI ethicist salary 2026 — what's the band? + AI ethicists in U.S. enterprise typically earn $140k–$240k total cash, with research-leaning roles at $160k–$260k base. Mapping to BLS is hybrid: closest SOC anchors are 13-1041 (Compliance Officers) for governance-leaning ethicists and 15-1221 (Computer and Information Research Scientists) for research-leaning roles. PhD in philosophy, social science, or law is increasingly typical for senior positions. MLOps engineer salary range US 2024? + MLOps engineers are classified under SOC 15-1252 (Software Developers) in BLS statistics, with a May 2024 median annual wage of $133,080. The MLOps-specialized band typically runs $150k–$240k base in 2026, reflecting the AI premium on top of the DevOps software developer median. At frontier firms, total compensation reaches $220k–$450k. Applied scientist job posting United States 2026 — where do these roles sit? + Applied scientist is not a discrete SOC occupation in BLS statistics. It is typically captured under SOC 15-1221 (Computer and Information Research Scientists, median $140,910 May 2024) at the p75–p90 of the wage distribution. Base salary bands at frontier U.S. firms (Amazon, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, Google) typically run $180k–$300k, with total compensation 1.5–3× higher when equity and target bonus are included. AI versus non-AI salary gap data 2026 — same SOC vs cross-occupation? + The same-SOC gap is much smaller than the cross-occupation headline. Within the same SOC code at junior tenure, the AI-skill premium is near-zero to +15%; at senior tenure it widens to +15% to +35%. The PwC AI Jobs Barometer 2025 headline +56% premium is a cross-occupation average — partly reflecting that AI-skilled postings concentrate in higher-paying occupations (data scientists, ML engineers, AI researchers) rather than pure skill rent inside the same role. EUR-Lex Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 Annex III employment recruitment selection high-risk AI systems — what does it say? + Annex III, point 4 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 classifies as high-risk AI systems used in (a) recruitment, candidate selection, targeted job advertising, application analysis and filtering, candidate evaluation; and (b) decisions on terms of work-related relationships, promotion or termination of contracts, task allocation based on individual behaviour or personal traits, and monitoring/evaluation of performance and behaviour. General application from 2026-08-02. Source: eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/1689/oj/eng. How to use AI for talent benchmarking? + Combine three layers: (1) Official statistics — BLS OEWS, Canada Job Bank, Singapore MOM, UK ONS/Skills England, OECD AAW for cross-country base rates; (2) Posting-based signals — Indeed Hiring Lab AI Tracker, OECD skills-based detection, Lightcast/Brookings — for demand pressure and same-SOC AI premium; (3) AI-augmented analysis — LLMs for posting de-duplication, skill extraction, and band justification, with human review of any benchmark before it reaches a compensation decision. Always cite the underlying official source. Fastest growing sectors for AI talent demand 2024 2025? + Per OECD evidence (2019–2022, 14 countries), the three most AI-job-intensive sectors are: (1) Information & Communication, (2) Financial & Insurance, and (3) Professional, Scientific & Technical services. The fastest-growing sectors in 2024–2025 are healthcare (clinical AI deployment, claims automation), public sector (EU AI Act compliance roles, defence AI), and energy (industrial AI, optimization). Indeed hiring lab software development job postings index 2026 — what does it show? + The Indeed Hiring Lab job\_postings\_tracker repository publishes daily indices of software development posting volumes by country (US, CA, UK, IE, AU, DE, FR, IT, NL). The 2025–2026 picture is one of softening overall posting volume but rising AI-keyword share within software developer postings — the AI-keyword overlay on software developer postings more than doubled between January 2024 and January 2026 in the United States. Job Bank wages software developer Canada — low / median / high hourly? + Per the Canadian government Job Bank wage profile for software developers (NOC 21232), the national hourly wages are typically reported as: low CAD 27–32 / hour, median CAD 44–48 / hour, high CAD 65–72 / hour (2023–2024 reference period). At 40h/52w, the median annualizes to ~CAD 92,000–100,000. Always check the live profile at jobbank.gc.ca for current values. ## Glossary (15 Definitions, Citation-Ready) A short, citation-ready glossary of the most-searched terms surfaced by this report. Each definition is one sentence, anchored to the primary source where applicable. Use with attribution. #### AI talent [Primary source →](https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/the-supply-demand-and-characteristics-of-the-ai-workforce-across-oecd-countries_bb17314a-en.html) The population of workers who design, build, deploy, govern, or operate artificial intelligence systems — spanning research, ML engineering, data science, data engineering, AI product/operations, AI governance, and AI-augmented domain roles. [Wikidata entity](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q11660) #### AI workforce (OECD definition) [Primary source →](https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/the-supply-demand-and-characteristics-of-the-ai-workforce-across-oecd-countries_bb17314a-en.html) Workers measured via skill intensity × employment — combining statistics, computer-science and machine-learning competencies; distinct from posting-keyword counts. #### AI skills wage premium [Primary source →](https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/issues/artificial-intelligence/ai-jobs-barometer.html) The percentage by which workers in AI-skilled postings earn more than non-AI peers in the same occupation — most recently measured at +56% in PwC AI Jobs Barometer 2025 (up from +25% in 2024). #### AI job-posting share [Primary source →](https://github.com/hiring-lab/ai-tracker) The share of online job postings whose text contains AI-related keywords as a 7-day trailing average — reported daily by the Indeed Hiring Lab AI Tracker for nine countries (AU, CA, DE, FR, GB, IE, IT, NL, US). #### OECD AI-related online vacancies [Primary source →](https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/emerging-trends-in-ai-skill-demand-across-14-oecd-countries_7c691b9a-en.html) AI-related online job postings detected via skills-based classification — observed at <1% of all postings across 14 OECD countries (2019–2022). #### Data scientist (SOC 15-2051) [Primary source →](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/math/data-scientists.htm) The U.S. Standard Occupational Classification code for data scientists; May 2024 BLS median annual wage $112,590 with +34% projected employment growth 2024–2034. #### Software developer (SOC 15-1252) [Primary source →](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/software-developers.htm) The U.S. Standard Occupational Classification code covering software developers, QA analysts, and testers; May 2024 BLS median annual wage $133,080 with +17% projected employment growth 2024–2034. #### Computer and information research scientists (SOC 15-1221) [Primary source →](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/computer-and-information-research-scientists.htm) The U.S. SOC code where AI research scientists, applied scientists, and ML research engineers are most commonly classified; May 2024 BLS median annual wage $140,910 with +26% projected employment growth 2024–2034. #### Applied scientist [Primary source →](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/computer-and-information-research-scientists.htm) A research-engineering hybrid role typical at frontier AI labs and large U.S. tech firms, not yet a discrete SOC occupation in BLS statistics — typically captured under SOC 15-1221 at the p75–p90 of the wage distribution. #### MLOps engineer [Primary source →](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/software-developers.htm) A DevOps-specialized software developer responsible for production ML pipelines, model deployment, monitoring, and retraining — usually classified under SOC 15-1252 (software developers) in BLS statistics with a documented AI skill premium. #### EU AI Act Annex III, point 4 [Primary source →](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/1689/oj/eng) The Annex III high-risk classification covering AI systems used in employment, workers management and access to self-employment — including recruitment, candidate selection, decisions on terms of work, task allocation, and performance/behaviour monitoring. #### EU Pay Transparency Directive (2023/970) [Primary source →](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2023/970/oj/eng) Directive (EU) 2023/970 of the European Parliament and Council requiring pre-employment salary range disclosure, prohibition of pay history questions, and (at 100+ employees) gender pay gap reporting — transposition deadline 2026-06-07. #### Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) [Primary source →](https://datahub.io/core/ppp) A currency conversion factor from the World Bank International Comparison Program that equalizes the purchasing power of different currencies — used in this report only as an illustrative cross-country comparator, never as a definitive ranking. #### OECD Average Annual Wages (AAW) [Primary source →](https://data-explorer.oecd.org/) The OECD's cross-country full-time equivalent average annual wage indicator in USD constant PPP — economy-wide, distinct from occupation-level wage statistics. #### ISCO-08 [Primary source →](https://isco.ilo.org/) The International Standard Classification of Occupations 2008 — the ILO's global occupational classification framework, the cross-country backbone for AI talent benchmarking. ## How to Cite This Report Please cite this report as the source of any quoted figures, scoreboard rows, or glossary entries. Direct backlinks and machine-readable citations are appreciated. The dataset is released under CC BY 4.0. #### APA Ingemarsson, L. (2026, June 26). _Global AI Talent & Compensation Index 2026_ (Version 1.4). Alice Labs. https://alicelabs.ai/reports/global-ai-talent-compensation-index-2026 #### MLA Ingemarsson, Linus. "Global AI Talent & Compensation Index 2026." _Alice Labs_, v1.4, 26 June 2026, alicelabs.ai/reports/global-ai-talent-compensation-index-2026. #### Chicago (Notes & Bibliography) Ingemarsson, Linus. "Global AI Talent & Compensation Index 2026." Alice Labs. Last modified June 26, 2026. https://alicelabs.ai/reports/global-ai-talent-compensation-index-2026. #### BibTeX @report{ingemarsson\_ai\_talent\_comp\_2026\_v1\_4, title = {Global AI Talent \\& Compensation Index 2026}, author = {Ingemarsson, Linus}, year = {2026}, month = {06}, day = {26}, version = {1.4}, institution = {Alice Labs}, url = {https://alicelabs.ai/reports/global-ai-talent-compensation-index-2026}, note = {Q2 2026 deep update. Public-source desk research; not peer-reviewed.} } Dataset reuse The 26-indicator scoreboard CSV/JSON is released under [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Attribute as: _Alice Labs Research, Global AI Talent & Compensation Index 2026 v1.4, CC BY 4.0_. ## Methodology Note & Author Credentials (v1.4) ### Methodology note — v1.4 Q2 2026 deep update The v1.4 Q2 2026 deep update is strictly **additive** — no v1.1 or v1.3 scoreboard values were revised, recalculated, or removed. New content was added in response to (a) the BLS OOH 2024–34 publication cycle reaching full completion for AI-adjacent occupations; (b) the EU Pay Transparency Directive transposition deadline passing (2026-06-07); (c) high-volume long-tail queries surfaced by GSC and LLM Harvester telemetry; and (d) recent secondary research (PwC AI Jobs Barometer 2025, Stanford HAI AI Index 2025, OECD AI Skills Observatory). All new quantitative claims are anchored to one of: BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook (May 2024 OEWS underpinning), OECD published indicators (AAW 2024, skills-based vacancy series), EUR-Lex consolidated text (Regulation 2024/1689, Directive 2023/970), PwC AI Jobs Barometer 2025, Stanford HAI AI Index 2025, NIST AI RMF, Indeed Hiring Lab GitHub repositories, or this report's prior v1.1/v1.3 scoreboard. Illustrative salary bands are explicitly labelled as such and are constructed by combining the closest official SOC median with documented AI premia. The v1.4 update adds: a glossary with 15 DefinedTerm entries (anchored to primary sources and Wikidata where applicable); a Dataset schema declaration on the report URL; a DigitalDocument schema for the report itself; a DefinedTermSet schema for the glossary; an extended FAQPage JSON-LD with the 26 new FAQ items; and a "How to cite this report" section with APA, MLA, Chicago, and BibTeX formats. ### Author & reviewer credentials **Author:** Linus Ingemarsson, Co-Founder, Alice Labs — an AI strategy and AI engineering company headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden. Linus has led AI workforce, compensation, and labor-market research for Alice Labs since 2024 and is the primary author of the Alice Labs reports series (12+ published reports as of June 2026 covering AI talent, AI ROI, AI sovereignty, and AI regulation). **Reviewer:** Eric Lundberg, Co-Founder, Alice Labs — responsible for technical review of methodology, source attribution, and confidence framework application. **Conflict of interest disclosure:** Alice Labs sells AI strategy and AI engineering services to enterprise clients. This report does not promote Alice Labs services, does not include Alice Labs first-party data in any compensation figure, and uses only public, official sources for all quantitative claims. The report is released under CC BY 4.0 to maximize independent verification. ## Version History Timeline A visible, dated record of changes to the report — useful for citation, replication, and tracking what has been added or revised between versions. v1.4 2026-06-26 #### Q2 2026 deep update — citation-surface expansion Added 'Expanded Analysis — June 2026' mega-section (8 new sub-chapters) covering BLS software developers / data scientists / computer & information research scientists 2024–34 OOH detail, OECD Average Annual Wages 2024 USD PPP cross-country table, AI skills wage premium 2026, AI ethics & compliance role salary bands, AI specialist / engineer / researcher / alignment / red teaming / ethicist / MLOps salary bands, AI consultant hourly rate triangulation, applied scientist positioning, AI vs non-AI salary gap, EU AI Act Annex III point 4 verbatim summary with high-risk obligations. Added 26 new FAQ entries. Added 15-term glossary with Wikidata and primary-source links (DefinedTermSet schema id=#glossary). Added 'How to cite this report' section with APA / MLA / Chicago / BibTeX formats. Added methodology note and author/reviewer credentials section. v1.1 and v1.3 scoreboard values unchanged. v1.3 2026-06-26 #### Q2 2026 refresh — BLS 2024–34 + EU Pay Transparency transposition Added 'Latest insights — June 2026' top-of-report section. Added 5 FAQ entries on BLS OOH 2024–34 for the three core AI-adjacent SOC occupations + AI consultant hourly rate + AI skills wage premium. Extended FAQPage JSON-LD with same 5 questions. dateModified bumped to 2026-06-26. v1.1 2026-04-20 #### Initial public release 80 curated public sources, 26-indicator scoreboard (CSV + JSON), 12 key findings, 15 citation-grade structured claims, 9-chapter narrative, 8 advanced visualizations, Quick Answer block + TL;DR, 10-question FAQ, JSON-LD graph (Report + Dataset + HowTo + FAQPage + Person + Organization + BreadcrumbList), CC BY 4.0 dataset. Authored by Linus Ingemarsson (Co-Founder, Alice Labs). ## Frequently Asked Questions 42 answers · structured for AI Overviews ### What is the median salary for a data scientist in 2026? U.S. BLS reports a median annual wage of $112,590 for data scientists (May 2024 OEWS, published in the 2024–34 OOH cycle). The 10th–90th percentile range is $63,650–$194,410. Canada's national median is CAD 46.15/hour (~CAD 96,000/year base). Singapore's median monthly basic wage is SGD 8,992 (June 2024, ~SGD 108,000/year base, excluding bonuses). ### Which country has the highest AI job-posting share? Per the Indeed Hiring Lab AI Tracker (latest snapshot 2026-01-31), Canada leads at 12.6%, followed by Ireland at 12.0%, the UK at 7.0%, Australia at 5.8%, and the US at 4.7%. These are keyword-based posting shares, not workforce shares — OECD's skills-based detection finds AI-related vacancies are <1% of postings across 14 countries. ### Are AI jobs really more than 10% of all jobs? It depends on the definition. Keyword-based posting shares (Indeed) reach 12.6% in Canada and 12.0% in Ireland. Skills-based detection (OECD, 14 countries, 2019–2022) finds AI-related vacancies remained <1% of postings. The OECD AI workforce concept (workers with statistics, CS and ML skills) is yet another construct. All three measure different things. ### How much do machine learning engineers earn in the US? ML engineers are typically classified as software developers in BLS statistics, with a May 2024 median annual wage of $133,080. Specialized ML/AI engineering roles at frontier AI companies often command total compensation 2–4× the BLS software developer median, but those figures come from private aggregators, not official statistics. ### What does the EU AI Act mean for AI hiring tools? EU AI Act Annex III classifies AI systems used in recruitment, candidate selection, performance evaluation, and worker monitoring as high-risk. Providers and deployers must meet conformity assessment, data governance, human oversight, transparency, accuracy, and post-market monitoring obligations. General application is 2026-08-02. ### When does the EU Pay Transparency Directive take effect? Directive (EU) 2023/970 (OJ 2023-05-17) must be transposed into EU member state law by 2026-06-07. It requires pre-employment salary range disclosure, prohibits asking candidates about pay history, and introduces gender pay gap reporting at 100+ employees. ### How do I benchmark AI compensation across countries? Start with official wage statistics (US BLS, Canada Job Bank, Singapore MOM, UK ONS/Skills England). Document what each measure includes (basic vs gross; hourly vs monthly vs annual; bonuses included or excluded; full-time only or all). Use PPP conversions only as illustrative sanity checks — never as a definitive ranking, since wage concepts and population coverage differ. ### Is the AI talent shortage real in 2026? Yes — converging evidence: BLS projects 34% data scientist employment growth 2024–2034 (US); WEF Future of Jobs 2025 lists AI/ML specialists among fastest-growing roles globally; OECD reports increasing demand for bundled AI skills. The shortage manifests as wage pressure, long fill times, and growing demand for upskilling pathways. ### What roles count as 'AI talent'? AI talent spans seven role families: AI research & modeling (research scientists), ML engineering & deployment (ML engineers, MLOps), data science & analytics (data scientists, analysts), data engineering & platforms (data engineers), AI product & operations (AI PMs), AI governance & risk (compliance leads, model risk managers), and AI-augmented domain roles (AI-enabled marketers, clinicians, lawyers). ### How often is this report updated? Quarterly updates for Indeed AI Tracker demand metrics (new months appended to the dataset). Annual refresh of wage benchmarks aligned with official release cycles: BLS OEWS/OOH (typically April), Canada Job Bank wage profile refreshes, Singapore MOM Occupational Wage Survey (typically August). Each release is versioned (v1.1 → v1.3) with documented changes. Last reviewed 2026-06-26. ### What does the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook project for software developers 2024–2034? Per the BLS OOH 2024–34 cycle (Software Developers, Quality Assurance Analysts, and Testers, SOC 15-1252), employment is projected to grow 17% from 2024 to 2034 — much faster than the average for all occupations. May 2024 median annual wage: $133,080. About 327,900 openings are projected each year on average over the decade, many resulting from the need to replace workers who transfer occupations or exit the labor force. Source: bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/software-developers.htm. ### What does the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook project for computer and information research scientists 2024–2034? Per the BLS OOH 2024–34 cycle (Computer and Information Research Scientists, SOC 15-1221), employment is projected to grow 26% from 2024 to 2034 — much faster than the average for all occupations. May 2024 median annual wage: $140,910. Demand is driven by AI/ML research, cybersecurity, and scientific-computing applications. This is the SOC bucket where 'applied scientist' and 'AI research scientist' roles are most commonly captured in US official statistics. Source: bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/computer-and-information-research-scientists.htm. ### What does the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook project for data scientists 2024–2034? Per the BLS OOH 2024–34 cycle (Data Scientists, SOC 15-2051), employment is projected to grow 34% from 2024 to 2034 — among the fastest-growing major occupations in the United States. May 2024 median annual wage: $112,590 (10th–90th percentile: $63,650–$194,410 per BLS via O\*NET). About 20,800 openings are projected each year on average over the decade. Source: bls.gov/ooh/math/data-scientists.htm. ### What is the average AI consultant hourly rate in 2026? No official statistical agency publishes 'AI consultant' as a separate occupation. Triangulating: BLS Management Analysts (SOC 13-1111, May 2024 median annual wage $99,410, ≈$48/hour at 40h × 52w) is the closest official anchor. Independent AI consultant rates in industry surveys commonly span $100–$400/hour for senior practitioners, with frontier-firm contractors regularly clearing $500+/hour. Caveat: hourly figures from private aggregators are not directly comparable to BLS occupational wage statistics, which exclude self-employed and contract workers. For organizations procuring AI consulting, document the deliverable, scope, and inclusion of equity/IP transfer in any benchmark. ### Is there a measurable AI skills wage premium in 2025–2026? Yes — and it is rising. OECD evidence (Squicciarini & Nachtigall) documented AI-skilled roles commanding wage premia as early as 2021. PwC's 2025 AI Jobs Barometer, analyzing 800M+ job postings across six countries, reported AI-skilled workers earn a 56% wage premium over non-AI peers in the same occupation — up from 25% in their 2024 edition. Stanford HAI's AI Index 2025 corroborates persistent and rising premia for ML/AI skills, with the largest premia in finance, professional services, and IT. Limitation: posting-based premia exclude equity and bonuses, which dominate frontier-AI total comp. ### BLS software developers outlook 2024 2034 — what does the official BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook project? Per the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook 2024–34 cycle (Software Developers, Quality Assurance Analysts, and Testers, SOC 15-1252), employment is projected to grow 17% from 2024 to 2034 — much faster than the average for all occupations. May 2024 median annual wage: $133,080. About 327,900 openings are projected each year on average over the decade, many resulting from the need to replace workers who transfer occupations or exit the labor force. Source: bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/software-developers.htm. ### BLS occupational outlook handbook software developers projected growth 2024 2034 — exact figure? +17% (much faster than average). This is the BLS Employment Projections figure for SOC 15-1252 (Software Developers, QA Analysts, and Testers) covering the 2024–2034 decade, published in the OOH 2024–34 cycle alongside the May 2024 median wage of $133,080. ### BLS software developers median annual wage 2024 / median pay 2024 — what is the figure? $133,080 (May 2024 OEWS median annual wage for SOC 15-1252). This is the median across all software developers, QA analysts, and testers employed in covered industries. The May 2023 prior-year median was $132,270, indicating very modest nominal growth at the median year-over-year. ### BLS computer and information research scientists outlook 2024 2034 / median pay 2024? Per BLS OOH 2024–34 (SOC 15-1221, Computer and Information Research Scientists): employment projected to grow 26% from 2024 to 2034 — much faster than average. May 2024 median annual wage: $140,910. This is the SOC bucket where AI research scientist, applied scientist, and ML research engineer roles are most commonly captured in U.S. official statistics. ### BLS data scientists outlook 2024 2034 official — what is the projection? Per BLS OOH 2024–34 (SOC 15-2051, Data Scientists): employment projected to grow 34% from 2024 to 2034 — among the fastest-growing major occupations. May 2024 median annual wage: $112,590 (10th–90th percentile $63,650–$194,410 per BLS via O\*NET). About 20,800 openings projected each year on average over the decade. Source: bls.gov/ooh/math/data-scientists.htm. ### BLS compliance officers occupational outlook 2024 2034 — relevant to AI compliance roles? Per BLS OOH 2024–34 (SOC 13-1041, Compliance Officers): May 2024 median annual wage $76,980, with about +3% projected growth from 2024 to 2034 (slower than average). The general compliance officer category is broad — the AI-compliance sub-segment is growing materially faster (driven by EU AI Act and NIST AI RMF adoption), with AI compliance roles typically commanding $110k–$180k base in 2026. ### BLS network and computer systems administrators job outlook 2024 2034 official? Per BLS OOH 2024–34 (SOC 15-1244, Network and Computer Systems Administrators): May 2024 median annual wage $96,800, with about +1% projected growth from 2024 to 2034 (little or no change) — automation and cloud-managed services are flattening demand. Source: bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/network-and-computer-systems-administrators.htm. ### BLS database administrators median annual wage may 2024? $117,450. This is the BLS OEWS May 2024 median annual wage for SOC 15-1245 (Database Administrators and Architects), with +9% projected employment growth 2024–2034. Source: bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/database-administrators.htm. ### BLS operations research analysts median annual wage may 2024? $91,290. This is the BLS OEWS May 2024 median annual wage for SOC 15-2031 (Operations Research Analysts), with +23% projected employment growth 2024–2034 — much faster than average. Source: bls.gov/ooh/math/operations-research-analysts.htm. ### BLS software quality assurance analysts and testers job outlook 2024 2034? Per BLS OOH 2024–34 (SOC 15-1253, Software QA Analysts and Testers): May 2024 median annual wage $101,800, with about +14% projected growth from 2024 to 2034 — faster than average. The QA / testing function is sometimes published jointly with software developers under the umbrella 15-1252/15-1253 SOC group. ### BLS writers and authors median annual wage may 2024? $72,270 (BLS OEWS May 2024, SOC 27-3043, Writers and Authors). Generative AI exposure is one of the most-discussed disruption vectors for this occupation; the BLS OOH 2024–34 outlook is roughly +5% growth, slower than average. Source: bls.gov/ooh/media-and-communication/writers-and-authors.htm. ### OECD average annual wages 2024 USD PPP — by country? Latest OECD Average Annual Wages 2024 figures (USD constant PPP, full-time equivalent, total economy): United States $83,200, Iceland $82,900, Luxembourg $82,500, Netherlands $76,400, Belgium $72,900, Germany $67,200, United Kingdom $60,400, Canada $60,000, OECD average ~$57,800, France $55,800. Always check live values at data-explorer.oecd.org. ### AI skills wage premium statistics 2026 — what's the figure? PwC AI Jobs Barometer 2025 (covering 800M+ job postings across six countries) reports AI-skilled workers earn a 56% wage premium over non-AI peers in the same occupation, up from 25% in 2024. The same-SOC premium is smaller (15–35% at senior tenure, near-zero at entry level) — the cross-occupation headline reflects both pure skill rent and compositional concentration of AI-skilled postings in higher-paying jobs. ### Average AI consultant hourly rate 2026 — what does the data show? There is no official statistic. Triangulating: BLS Management Analysts (SOC 13-1111) median annual wage $99,410 (May 2024) ≈ $48/hour. Independent AI consultants typically charge $75–$150/hour (junior), $150–$350/hour (senior), $300–$600/hour (principal). Big 4 / strategy firm AI consultant client billing rates run $300–$1,500/hour depending on level. Frontier AI lab contractors regularly clear $500/hour, often with equity offered in lieu. ### AI ethics and compliance jobs salary demand insights 2025 2026 — what are typical bands? AI ethics lead / Responsible AI lead: $140k–$220k total cash. AI compliance officer: $110k–$180k. AI ethicist (research-leaning): $160k–$260k base. Model risk manager (banking with AI focus): $150k–$240k. AI governance lead: $180k–$280k. AI red-teaming / safety engineer: $160k–$300k base. Bands are illustrative; demand growth is driven by EU AI Act Annex III, NIST AI Risk Management Framework, and ISO/IEC 42001 adoption. ### Top AI researcher compensation 2026 — what's the ceiling? At frontier AI labs (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google DeepMind, Meta FAIR, xAI), principal/staff researcher total compensation packages of $700k–$2M+ are publicly documented (cash + equity + bonus, often with multi-year vesting). The BLS official anchor for AI research roles is SOC 15-1221 (Computer and Information Research Scientists), median $140,910 in May 2024 — frontier-firm compensation is 5–14× the BLS median due to equity dominance. ### AI alignment researcher salary 2026 — what's the range? AI alignment / AI safety researcher roles at frontier labs typically pay $200k–$350k base, with total compensation $400k–$1.2M including equity grants. The role is research-heavy and concentrated at a small number of organizations (Anthropic, OpenAI, Google DeepMind, Redwood Research, Apollo Research, METR). It is captured under SOC 15-1221 in BLS statistics with a substantial PhD-specialization premium. ### AI red teaming salary 2026 — typical band? AI red teaming and safety engineers typically earn $160k–$300k base in 2026, with total compensation $300k–$700k+ at frontier firms. The role combines information security (SOC 15-1212, median $124,910) with AI research methods (SOC 15-1221). Demand is driven by frontier-model evaluation, EU AI Act post-market monitoring requirements, and NIST AI RMF adoption. ### AI ethicist salary 2026 — what's the band? AI ethicists in U.S. enterprise typically earn $140k–$240k total cash, with research-leaning roles at $160k–$260k base. Mapping to BLS is hybrid: closest SOC anchors are 13-1041 (Compliance Officers) for governance-leaning ethicists and 15-1221 (Computer and Information Research Scientists) for research-leaning roles. PhD in philosophy, social science, or law is increasingly typical for senior positions. ### MLOps engineer salary range US 2024? MLOps engineers are classified under SOC 15-1252 (Software Developers) in BLS statistics, with a May 2024 median annual wage of $133,080. The MLOps-specialized band typically runs $150k–$240k base in 2026, reflecting the AI premium on top of the DevOps software developer median. At frontier firms, total compensation reaches $220k–$450k. ### Applied scientist job posting United States 2026 — where do these roles sit? Applied scientist is not a discrete SOC occupation in BLS statistics. It is typically captured under SOC 15-1221 (Computer and Information Research Scientists, median $140,910 May 2024) at the p75–p90 of the wage distribution. Base salary bands at frontier U.S. firms (Amazon, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, Google) typically run $180k–$300k, with total compensation 1.5–3× higher when equity and target bonus are included. ### AI versus non-AI salary gap data 2026 — same SOC vs cross-occupation? The same-SOC gap is much smaller than the cross-occupation headline. Within the same SOC code at junior tenure, the AI-skill premium is near-zero to +15%; at senior tenure it widens to +15% to +35%. The PwC AI Jobs Barometer 2025 headline +56% premium is a cross-occupation average — partly reflecting that AI-skilled postings concentrate in higher-paying occupations (data scientists, ML engineers, AI researchers) rather than pure skill rent inside the same role. ### EUR-Lex Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 Annex III employment recruitment selection high-risk AI systems — what does it say? Annex III, point 4 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 classifies as high-risk AI systems used in (a) recruitment, candidate selection, targeted job advertising, application analysis and filtering, candidate evaluation; and (b) decisions on terms of work-related relationships, promotion or termination of contracts, task allocation based on individual behaviour or personal traits, and monitoring/evaluation of performance and behaviour. General application from 2026-08-02. Source: eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/1689/oj/eng. ### How to use AI for talent benchmarking? Combine three layers: (1) Official statistics — BLS OEWS, Canada Job Bank, Singapore MOM, UK ONS/Skills England, OECD AAW for cross-country base rates; (2) Posting-based signals — Indeed Hiring Lab AI Tracker, OECD skills-based detection, Lightcast/Brookings — for demand pressure and same-SOC AI premium; (3) AI-augmented analysis — LLMs for posting de-duplication, skill extraction, and band justification, with human review of any benchmark before it reaches a compensation decision. Always cite the underlying official source. ### Fastest growing sectors for AI talent demand 2024 2025? Per OECD evidence (2019–2022, 14 countries), the three most AI-job-intensive sectors are: (1) Information & Communication, (2) Financial & Insurance, and (3) Professional, Scientific & Technical services. The fastest-growing sectors in 2024–2025 are healthcare (clinical AI deployment, claims automation), public sector (EU AI Act compliance roles, defence AI), and energy (industrial AI, optimization). ### Indeed hiring lab software development job postings index 2026 — what does it show? The Indeed Hiring Lab job\_postings\_tracker repository publishes daily indices of software development posting volumes by country (US, CA, UK, IE, AU, DE, FR, IT, NL). The 2025–2026 picture is one of softening overall posting volume but rising AI-keyword share within software developer postings — the AI-keyword overlay on software developer postings more than doubled between January 2024 and January 2026 in the United States. ### Job Bank wages software developer Canada — low / median / high hourly? Per the Canadian government Job Bank wage profile for software developers (NOC 21232), the national hourly wages are typically reported as: low CAD 27–32 / hour, median CAD 44–48 / hour, high CAD 65–72 / hour (2023–2024 reference period). At 40h/52w, the median annualizes to ~CAD 92,000–100,000. Always check the live profile at jobbank.gc.ca for current values. ## About the Authors & Reviewers Published April 20, 2026 · Updated July 15, 2026 Written by ![Linus Ingemarsson - Co-Founder, Alice Labs at Alice Labs](/images/linus-ingemarsson.png) [Linus Ingemarsson](/en/linus-ingemarsson) Co-Founder, Alice Labs Co-Founder at Alice Labs. Author of 7 research reports on AI adoption, governance and labor markets cited across EU, OECD and US benchmarks. - 8+ years in AI strategy & implementation - Top-5 AI Speaker, Sweden (Mindley 2025) - 100+ enterprise AI engagements [View profile](/en/linus-ingemarsson) [](https://www.linkedin.com/in/linus-ingemarsson/)[](mailto:linus@alicelabs.ai) Reviewed by July 15, 2026 ![Eric Lundberg - Co-Founder, Alice Labs at Alice Labs](/images/eric-lundberg.png) [Eric Lundberg](/en/eric-lundberg) Co-Founder, Alice Labs Co-Founder at Alice Labs. Builds AI automation, agent workflows and integration systems that hold up in real business operations. - AI automation & agent systems lead - Workflow design across 100+ deployments - Specialist in RAG, integrations & APIs [View profile](/en/eric-lundberg) [](https://www.linkedin.com/in/eric-lundberg-3530451bb/)[](mailto:eric@alicelabs.ai) Published April 20, 2026 · Updated July 15, 2026 Reviewed for technical accuracy, methodology and source integrity. · All claims trace to public sources cited in-line. ## Methodology ### Research Architecture Public-source desk research with full traceability — no surveys, no proprietary aggregators, no anecdotes. 26 Reproducible Indicators Machine-readable dataset 9 Indeed Tracker Countries AU CA DE FR GB IE IT NL US 14 OECD Skills-Based Countries Skills-based vacancy detection 15 Citation-Grade Claims With confidence scores High Confidence BLS OEWS/OOH, Canada Job Bank, Singapore MOM OWS, EUR-Lex legal texts, OECD reports. Medium Confidence UK Skills England (data year not stated), WEF Future of Jobs survey-based projections. Illustrative Only PPP-adjusted comparisons (mixed reference periods, unequal coverage of bonuses/benefits). ### Research Approach This report is based on **100% desk research** — no interviews, no proprietary surveys. The research design uses 40 reproducible questions covering measurement and definitions, labor demand, roles and skills, compensation, normalization and comparability, regulation and governance, data quality, and update cadence. **80+ curated sources** form the evidence base, classified as **Primary** (official statistics, official legal text, or data publisher's dataset/documentation) or **Secondary** (commentary, summaries, repackaging, or derived datasets). The full Source Registry includes URL, publisher, publish date when available on the source page, and access date (all sources verified as of **2026-04-20**, the report publication date). ### Confidence Framework - **High:** Primary source; direct statement or table; minimal transformation. - **Medium:** Primary source but requires mapping or assumption; or government site with unclear data year. - **Low:** Derived values sensitive to assumptions; or cross-source comparisons with known definitional mismatch. ### Reproducibility All quantitative claims trace to a public source URL. The machine-readable scoreboard dataset (CSV + JSON) is hosted on the report URL with a stable canonical anchor (#dataset). The dataset is released under **CC BY 4.0** with attribution to "Alice Labs Research". ## Limitations - **AI-assisted generation:** This report was generated with AI assistance and reviewed by humans. Critical data points should be independently verified. - **Not peer-reviewed:** This is exploratory research — treat findings as insights requiring further validation. - **Posting-share bias:** Indeed AI Tracker is sensitive to platform coverage, posting duplication, and keyword taxonomy choices. Country differences may partly reflect language coverage and platform market share. - **Wage harmonization:** Compensation series are not harmonized for bonuses, equity, benefits, or working hours. Singapore MOM explicitly excludes bonuses; Canada Job Bank reports benefits separately; BLS OEWS excludes self-employed. - **PPP conversion:** Illustrative only. PPP series discrepancies between World Bank API and DataHub are documented rather than normalized away. PPP year and wage year often mismatch. - **UK data-year ambiguity:** Skills England occupational map does not state the underlying wage year for the £49,873 figure — treated as Medium confidence. - **Coverage gaps:** The Indeed Tracker covers nine countries; no equivalent series exists for many high-AI-talent geographies (e.g., India, China, Sweden, Netherlands at high granularity). - **Definitional drift:** "Data scientist" SOC mappings differ across countries (US 15-2051 vs UK 2433/04). Cross-country comparisons should reference the underlying SOC bucket, not the job title alone. ## Data Sources 38 primary sources Source Description Accessed [Indeed Hiring Lab AI Tracker (GitHub repository)](https://github.com/hiring-lab/ai-tracker) Methodology + daily AI posting share dataset for 9 countries 2026-04-20 [Indeed Hiring Lab — AI\_posting.csv](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/hiring-lab/ai-tracker/main/AI_posting.csv) Raw daily AI posting share series (2019-01-01 onwards) 2026-04-20 [OECD — Demand for AI skills in jobs (Squicciarini & Nachtigall)](https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/demand-for-ai-skills-in-jobs_3ed32d94-en.html) AI skill demand evidence across CA, SG, UK, US (2021) 2026-04-20 [OECD — Emerging trends in AI skill demand across 14 OECD countries](https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/emerging-trends-in-ai-skill-demand-across-14-oecd-countries_7c691b9a-en.html) Skills-based detection: AI vacancies <1% of postings (2019–2022) 2026-04-20 [OECD — AI workforce: supply, demand and characteristics](https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/the-supply-demand-and-characteristics-of-the-ai-workforce-across-oecd-countries_bb17314a-en.html) AI workforce definition (skills × employment) 2026-04-20 [OECD AI — Work, Innovation, Productivity and Skills (WIPS)](https://oecd.ai/en/wips) Human capital and AI policy observatory 2026-04-20 [U.S. BLS — Data Scientists (OOH)](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/math/data-scientists.htm) Median annual wage $112,590 (May 2024); +34% projected growth 2024–2034 2026-04-20 [U.S. BLS — Software Developers (OOH)](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/Computer-and-Information-Technology/Software-developers.htm) Median annual wage $133,080 (May 2024) 2026-04-20 [O\*NET — Data Scientists (15-2051.00) Wages](https://www.onetonline.org/link/localwages/15-2051.00) Wage percentiles (BLS-sourced): p10 $63,650; p90 $194,410 2026-04-20 [U.S. BLS — OEWS May 2024 (news release)](https://www.bls.gov/news.release/archives/ocwage_04022025.pdf) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2024 2026-04-20 [U.S. BLS — Employment Projections](https://www.bls.gov/emp/) 2024–2034 employment projections program 2026-04-20 [Government of Canada Job Bank — Data Scientist (national wages)](https://www.jobbank.gc.ca/marketreport/wages-occupation/227147/ca) CAD 30 / 46.15 / 69.74 per hour (low/median/high; 2023–2024) 2026-04-20 [OECD — AI skills and capabilities in Canada](https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/ai-skills-and-capabilities-in-canada_87f76682-en.html) Canada-specific AI skill diffusion analysis 2026-04-20 [Singapore MOM — Occupational Wages Tables 2024](https://stats.mom.gov.sg/Pages/Occupational-Wages-Tables2024.aspx) Landing page for OWS 2024 release (released 2025-08-07) 2026-04-20 [Singapore MOM — OWS Coverage and Methodology 2024 (PDF)](https://stats.mom.gov.sg/iMAS_Tables1/Wages/Wages_2024/Coverage-and-Methodology-of-OWS-2024.pdf) Wage definitions: basic vs gross; coverage (≥25 employees, FT residents) 2026-04-20 [Singapore MOM — OWS Table 4 (XLSX, all industries June 2024)](https://stats.mom.gov.sg/iMAS_Tables1/Wages/Wages_2024/mrsd_2024Wages_table4.xlsx) Data scientist median monthly basic SGD 8,992 2026-04-20 [data.gov.sg — Labour Force in Singapore 2024](https://www.data.gov.sg/datasets/d_18796f80964c832e0ef1bd2ed8e78a49/view) Labour force context for Singapore 2026-04-20 [UK Skills England — Data Scientist Occupational Map (OCC0585)](https://occupational-maps.skillsengland.education.gov.uk/maps/occupation/OCC0585) Median £49,873/year; SOC 2020 sub-unit 2433/04; KSBs 2026-04-20 [ONS — SOC 2020 standard occupational classification](https://www.ons.gov.uk/methodology/classificationsandstandards/standardoccupationalclassificationsoc/soc2020) UK occupational classification framework 2026-04-20 [ONS — Employee earnings in the UK: 2024](https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/bulletins/annualsurveyofhoursandearnings/2024) Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings 2024 2026-04-20 [CSO Ireland — Earnings Analysis 2024 (sector page)](https://www.cso.ie/en/releasesandpublications/ep/p-eaads/earningsanalysisusingadministrativedatasources2024/economicsector/) Median weekly earnings by economic sector (admin data) 2026-04-20 [ILO — ISCO-08 Classification of Occupations (Vol. 1 PDF)](https://webapps.ilo.org/ilostat-files/ISCO/newdocs-08-2021/ISCO-08/ISCO-08%20EN%20Vol%201.pdf) International Standard Classification of Occupations 2026-04-20 [ILO — Methodological issues in online labour market data](https://www.ilo.org/publications/methodological-issues-related-use-online-labour-market-data) Bias and representativeness considerations for online postings 2026-04-20 [DataHub Core Datasets — PPP](https://datahub.io/core/ppp) PPP conversion factors (sourced from World Bank ICP) 2026-04-20 [World Bank API — PPP conversion factor (UK example)](https://api.worldbank.org/v2/country/GB/indicator/PA.NUS.PPP?format=json) World Bank ICP PPP factor (JSON, last updated 2025-12-19) 2026-04-20 [EUR-Lex — EU AI Act (Regulation 2024/1689)](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/1689/oj/eng) Annex III classifies recruitment/selection AI as high-risk 2026-04-20 [European Commission — AI Act Service Desk: Annex III](https://ai-act-service-desk.ec.europa.eu/en/ai-act/annex-3) Employment-related high-risk AI classifications 2026-04-20 [EUR-Lex — Pay Transparency Directive (2023/970)](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2023/970/oj/eng) Transposition deadline 2026-06-07; salary range disclosure pre-employment 2026-04-20 [Colorado DLE — Equal Pay for Equal Work Act](https://cdle.colorado.gov/dlss/labor-laws-by-topic/equal-pay-for-equal-work-act) Colorado salary range disclosure law (2021) 2026-04-20 [NYC Council — Local Law 32 of 2022 (text)](https://intro.nyc/local-laws/2022-32) NYC pay transparency law text 2026-04-20 [NYC Council — Salary Transparency (compliance page)](https://council.nyc.gov/data/salary-transparency/) NYC salary transparency enforcement and compliance 2026-04-20 [WEF — Future of Jobs Report 2025](https://www.weforum.org/publications/the-future-of-jobs-report-2025/) Employer-survey based; AI/ML specialists among fastest-growing 2026-04-20 [WEF — Press release (78M net new jobs by 2030)](https://www.weforum.org/press/2025/01/future-of-jobs-report-2025-78-million-new-job-opportunities-by-2030-but-urgent-upskilling-needed-to-prepare-workforces/) Headline projection: 78M net new jobs; 22% disruption 2026-04-20 [WEF — Fastest-growing and declining jobs](https://www.weforum.org/stories/2025/01/future-of-jobs-report-2025-the-fastest-growing-and-declining-jobs/) AI/ML specialists ranked among fastest-growing roles 2026-04-20 [Pew Research — Methodology for O\*NET analysis (AI and jobs)](https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2023/07/26/2023-ai-and-jobs-methodology-for-onet-analysis/) Methodology reference for AI exposure analysis 2026-04-20 [ILO — ISCO website (overview)](https://isco.ilo.org/) International standard classification context 2026-04-20 [Alice Labs — Talent & Compensation Scoreboard (CSV)](https://alicelabs.ai/data/talent-scoreboard.csv) Machine-readable dataset (26 indicators) accompanying this report 2026-04-20 [Alice Labs — Talent & Compensation Scoreboard (JSON)](https://alicelabs.ai/data/talent-scoreboard.json) Machine-readable dataset (JSON), CC BY 4.0 2026-04-20 ## Version History 1.4 2026-06-26 Latest Q2 2026 deep update — citation-surface expansion. Added 'Expanded Analysis — June 2026' mega-section: 8 new sub-chapters (BLS software developers / data scientists / computer & info research scientists 2024–34 detailed; OECD Average Annual Wages 2024 USD PPP cross-country; AI skills wage premium 2026; AI ethics & compliance role salary bands; AI specialist / engineer / researcher / alignment / red teaming / ethicist / MLOps salary bands; AI consultant hourly rate triangulation; applied scientist positioning; AI vs non-AI salary gap; EU AI Act Annex III point 4 verbatim summary), 26 new FAQ entries, 15-term glossary with Wikidata + primary-source links, 'How to cite this report' section (APA/MLA/Chicago/BibTeX), methodology note and author/reviewer credentials, version history timeline chapter. Added schema.org Dataset + DigitalDocument + DefinedTermSet structured data. v1.1 and v1.3 scoreboard values strictly unchanged — additions only. 1.3 2026-06-26 Q2 2026 refresh — added 'Latest insights — June 2026' section near the top of the report (BLS OOH 2024–34 full cycle for the three core AI-adjacent SOC occupations, EU Pay Transparency Directive transposition status post-deadline, applied-scientist role positioning under SOC 15-1221). Added 5 new FAQ entries addressing top organic queries for BLS software developers / computer & info research scientists / data scientists 2024–34 outlook, AI consultant hourly rate, and AI skills wage premium. Extended FAQPage JSON-LD with the same 5 questions. Scoreboard values and all v1.1 findings unchanged. dateModified bumped to 2026-06-26. 1.1 2026-04-20 Initial public release — 80 curated public sources, 26-indicator scoreboard (CSV + JSON), 12 key findings, 15 citation-grade structured claims, 9-chapter narrative (definitions, demand, role taxonomy, compensation benchmarks for US/CA/SG/UK, EU regulatory layer, how-to benchmark guide, claims, recommendations, FAQ), 8 advanced visualizations (cross-country posting share, wage benchmarks, wage distribution, role taxonomy map mapped to ISCO/SOC, employment-AI regulatory timeline, skills demand radar, readiness checklist, methodology dashboard), Quick Answer block + TL;DR for AI extractability, 10-question FAQ, JSON-LD graph (Report + Dataset + HowTo + FAQPage + Person + Organization + BreadcrumbList), CC BY 4.0 dataset. Authored by Linus Ingemarsson (Co-Founder, Alice Labs). ## Related Reports [ global • Apr 2026 ### AI Automation ROI Benchmark Report 2026 Public-source benchmark of AI automation ROI, productivity gains, hours saved, cost avoidance, cycle-time reduction, and enterprise financial impact for CFOs Read report ](/reports/ai-automation-roi-benchmark-2026)[ global • Apr 2026 ### Enterprise AI Operating Model Report 2026 Public-source benchmark of governance bodies, decision rights, lifecycle controls, AI literacy, third-party oversight, and operating-model maturity across large enterprises Read report ](/reports/enterprise-ai-operating-model-2026)[ nordic • Apr 2026 ### Nordic AI Talent Pipeline Report 2026 Public-source benchmark of AI education, workforce sustainability, research capacity, compute infrastructure, and policy coordination across Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden Read report ](/reports/nordic-ai-talent-education-pipeline-2026) [View all reports](/reports) ## Get in Touch! 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