The Equinix 2023 Global Tech Trends survey reveals that job opportunities in the information technology (IT) sector of the UAE are set to increase, as 80 percent of IT leaders have plans to expand their teams within the next 12 months. This data indicates a positive outlook for the IT job market in the UAE, with a significant number of organizations looking to bolster their workforce in response to evolving technology trends and demands.
Read more: How technology is changing the workplace
The growing prominence of technology, specifically the emergence of advanced artificial intelligence (AI) systems and generative AI, has sparked a significant increase in the demand for IT systems.
The impact of this trend is reflected in the fact that 57 percent of global IT decision-makers have experienced team expansions in the past two years. The demand for talents specializing in AI and machine learning is particularly notable. However, tech leaders are planning to shift their focus away from hardware engineering (25 percent) and data analysis (24 percent) as they realign their priorities.
Extensive application
Kamel Al-Tawil, managing director of Equinix MENA, stated that AI has found extensive application in various business functions within the UAE, ranging from IT operations to cybersecurity and sales. According to Al-Tawil, this widespread adoption of AI has resulted in a notable transformation of the IT and operations landscape. It has elevated its significance from being merely a backend operation to a crucial catalyst for achieving business success.
AI adoption
According to the survey, there has been a noticeable increase in the adoption of AI across all industry sectors. A significant 85 percent of respondents worldwide expressed their intention to leverage the advantages offered by AI. Many of these respondents are either currently integrating AI into their operations or have plans to do so in the future, extending its implementation across multiple key functions.
In the UAE, businesses are utilizing AI or planning to do so in specific areas. One area is IT operations, where 97 percent of businesses indicate AI utilization or adoption plans. Closely behind IT operations is the domain of cybersecurity. In the UAE, 95 percent of businesses express their interest in leveraging AI in this area.
Massive layoffs
Furthermore, based on insights gathered from 2,900 IT decision-makers globally, the survey provides valuable information regarding the challenges and opportunities that are currently influencing businesses worldwide.
However, according to data from the layoffs tracking site Layoffs.fyi, a total of 232,650 employees working at 979 technology companies across the globe have unfortunately experienced job losses in the period leading up to August 30, 2023.
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