AI proficiency is rapidly becoming an assumed workplace skill rather than a specialized qualification, according to new data from career platform Ladders. While the number of dedicated AI roles has tripled since 2021, the percentage of job postings explicitly mentioning AI has actually decreased across all major job categories.
Marc Cenedella, founder and CEO of Ladders, explained that employers are beginning to view AI technology as an everyday skill similar to Microsoft Office rather than a differentiator worth highlighting in job descriptions. Among the dozen job categories Ladders analyzed, each experienced a decline in AI mentions. Design and UX roles saw AI references drop from 56.7% in 2021 to 44.6% in 2025, while product management positions registered similar decreases. Even software engineering roles, where AI coding agents have raised concerns about junior developer employment prospects, saw AI mentions decline from 53.5% to 45.8% over the four-year period.
However, this trend doesn’t signal waning interest in AI. The data reveals that 525,000 leadership and executive roles now include AI references, up dramatically from 213,000 in 2021. In 2025, 45% of executive postings on the platform mention the technology. Non-technical roles in finance, operations, design, sales, and project management are experiencing some of the fastest increases in AI skills adoption.
Overall, jobs specifically focused on AI, such as specialized engineering positions, surged to 6.7 million in 2025 from 2.1 million in 2021 on the Ladders platform. Cenedella suggested that AI mentions could increase again if specialized industry-specific tools emerge, potentially around 2026 or 2027, requiring workers in sectors like sales, pharmaceuticals, or semiconductors to demonstrate fluency with particular AI applications.
Agur Jõgi, CTO at software company Pipedrive, emphasized that AI proficiency is now “just like a ticket to the game” regardless of whether job postings explicitly mention it. He warned that professionals who resist adopting AI tools may face longer workdays to keep pace with colleagues leveraging the technology, while early adopters will need to continuously develop new advantages as AI becomes universally adopted.
Key Quotes
It will be mentioned less and less in the same way that Microsoft Office isn’t mentioned in job postings anymore
Marc Cenedella, founder and CEO of Ladders, explained how AI is transitioning from a specialized skill to an assumed baseline competency that employers expect all candidates to possess without needing to explicitly state it in job descriptions.
It’s just like a ticket to the game
Agur Jõgi, CTO at Pipedrive, emphasized that AI proficiency has become a fundamental requirement for workplace participation, regardless of whether employers explicitly mention it in job postings, making it essential for career viability.
That enables you to move as fast as the rest of the industry is moving
Jõgi stressed the importance of understanding how AI is transforming specific fields and job functions, warning that professionals who don’t keep pace with industry-wide AI adoption risk falling behind their peers.
To beat the competition, you need to do something smarter, or you need to do slightly more
Jõgi noted that as AI adoption becomes universal, early adopters who initially gained productivity advantages will see those benefits diminish, requiring them to continuously develop new strategic approaches to maintain competitive edge.
Our Take
This data reveals a critical inflection point in AI’s workplace integration. The simultaneous decrease in explicit AI mentions alongside tripling AI roles suggests we’re witnessing AI’s normalization rather than its decline. This pattern mirrors historical technology adoption curves—remember when “internet skills” or “email proficiency” disappeared from resumes?
The most concerning aspect is the invisible skills gap this creates. Job seekers who take postings at face value may arrive unprepared for AI-integrated workflows that employers now consider standard. This particularly impacts career changers and returning workers who may not realize how dramatically workplace expectations have shifted.
The concentration of AI mentions in executive roles (45%) while declining in individual contributor positions suggests a strategic disconnect—leadership recognizes AI’s importance while assuming ground-level implementation. Organizations must bridge this gap through explicit training and communication rather than assuming universal AI literacy.
Why This Matters
This shift represents a fundamental transformation in workplace expectations and signals AI’s transition from emerging technology to essential business tool. The decreasing mentions of AI in job postings, paradoxically coupled with tripling AI-specific roles, indicates that AI literacy is becoming as fundamental as computer literacy was in previous decades.
For job seekers, this creates a hidden requirement: AI skills are increasingly expected but not explicitly stated, making it critical for professionals across all industries to proactively develop these capabilities. The rapid adoption in non-technical roles like finance, sales, and operations demonstrates that AI is no longer confined to tech departments but is permeating every business function.
This trend has significant implications for workforce development and education systems, which must adapt to ensure workers aren’t left behind. The data also suggests a widening productivity gap between AI-adopters and holdouts, potentially creating new forms of workplace inequality. As AI becomes ubiquitous, the competitive advantage will shift from simply using AI to using it more strategically and creatively than peers.
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Source: https://www.businessinsider.com/fewer-job-listings-mention-ai-still-important-2025-12