Visualizing the Top U.S. States for AI Jobs
Much ink has been spilled over fears that artificial intelligence (AI) will eliminate jobs in the economy. While some of those fears may be well-founded, red-hot interest in AI innovation is creating new jobs as well.
This graphic visualizes data from Lightcast, a labor market analytics firm, which shows how many AI-related jobs were posted in each state throughout 2022.
In total there were 795,624 AI jobs posted throughout the year, of which 469,925 (59%) were in the top 10. The full tally is included in the table below.
| Rank | State | Number of job postings | % of total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | 142,154 | 17.9% |
| 2 | Texas | 66,624 | 8.4% |
| 3 | New York | 43,899 | 5.5% |
| 4 | Massachusetts | 34,603 | 4.3% |
| 5 | Virginia | 34,221 | 4.3% |
| 6 | Florida | 33,585 | 4.2% |
| 7 | Illinois | 31,569 | 4.0% |
| 8 | Washington | 31,284 | 3.9% |
| 9 | Georgia | 26,620 | 3.3% |
| 10 | Michigan | 25,366 | 3.2% |
| 11 | North Carolina | 23,854 | 3.0% |
| 12 | New Jersey | 23,447 | 2.9% |
| 13 | Colorado | 20,421 | 2.6% |
| 14 | Pennsylvania | 20,397 | 2.6% |
| 15 | Arizona | 19,514 | 2.5% |
| 16 | Ohio | 19,208 | 2.4% |
| 17 | Maryland | 16,769 | 2.1% |
| 18 | Minnesota | 11,808 | 1.5% |
| 19 | Tennessee | 11,173 | 1.4% |
| 20 | Missouri | 10,990 | 1.4% |
| 21 | Oregon | 10,811 | 1.4% |
| 22 | Washington, D.C. | 9,606 | 1.2% |
| 23 | Indiana | 9,247 | 1.2% |
| 24 | Connecticut | 8,960 | 1.1% |
| 25 | Wisconsin | 8,879 | 1.1% |
| 26 | Alabama | 7,866 | 1.0% |
| 27 | Kansas | 7,683 | 1.0% |
| 28 | Arkansas | 7,247 | 0.9% |
| 29 | Utah | 6,885 | 0.9% |
| 30 | Nevada | 6,813 | 0.9% |
| 31 | Idaho | 6,109 | 0.8% |
| 32 | Oklahoma | 5,719 | 0.7% |
| 33 | Iowa | 5,670 | 0.7% |
| 34 | South Carolina | 4,928 | 0.6% |
| 35 | Louisiana | 4,806 | 0.6% |
| 36 | Kentucky | 4,536 | 0.6% |
| 37 | Nebraska | 4,032 | 0.5% |
| 38 | Delaware | 3,503 | 0.4% |
| 39 | New Mexico | 3,357 | 0.4% |
| 40 | Rhode Island | 2,965 | 0.4% |
| 41 | New Hampshire | 2,719 | 0.3% |
| 42 | Hawaii | 2,550 | 0.3% |
| 43 | Mississippi | 2,548 | 0.3% |
| 44 | Maine | 2,227 | 0.3% |
| 45 | South Dakota | 2,195 | 0.3% |
| 46 | Vermont | 1,571 | 0.2% |
| 47 | North Dakota | 1,227 | 0.2% |
| 48 | Alaska | 970 | 0.1% |
| 49 | West Virginia | 887 | 0.1% |
| 50 | Montana | 833 | 0.1% |
| 51 | Wyoming | 769 | 0.1% |
The following chart adds some context to these numbers. It shows how the percentage of AI job postings in some of the top states has changed since 2010.
We can see that California quickly became the primary destination for AI jobs in the early 2010s, presumably as Silicon Valley companies began developing the technology.
California’s share has since declined, with a significant number of jobs seemingly moving to Texas. In fact, many tech companies are relocating to Texas to avoid California’s relatively higher taxes and cost of living.
The 10 Most In-Demand Specialized Skills
Lightcast also captured the top 10 specialized skills that were required for AI-related jobs. These are listed in the table below.
| Skill | Frequency (number of postings) | Frequency (% of postings) |
|---|---|---|
| Python | 296,662 | 37% |
| Computer Science | 260,333 | 33% |
| SQL | 185,807 | 23% |
| Data Analysis | 159,801 | 20% |
| Data Science | 157,855 | 20% |
| Amazon Web Services | 155,615 | 19% |
| Agile Methodology | 152,965 | 19% |
| Automation | 138,791 | 17% |
| Java | 133,856 | 17% |
| Software Engineering | 133,286 | 17% |
If you’re interested in a career that focuses on AI, becoming proficient in Python is likely to be a good first step.
