Scaler report: Women transitioning to AI roles see average salary increase of 145%
A report by learning platform Scaler indicates that women professionals moving into artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled roles have experienced an average salary hike of 145 per cent. The finding is part of the India AI Workforce Report 2026, which surveyed 11,444 professionals across the country.
The report suggests that AI is becoming a workforce-wide capability rather than a skill limited to software engineers. It notes that women are contributing to AI across functions such as human resources, academia, marketing, and other business areas. Among women professionals, quality assurance engineers recorded the highest salary gains after AI upskilling, with compensation increasing by as much as 574 per cent.
Abhimanyu Saxena, co-founder of Scaler, said: “AI is creating new pathways to opportunity, accelerating career growth, and enabling professionals to command a stronger compensation outcome. At a time when much of the conversation around AI focuses on job displacement, the findings tell a different story.”
The report also highlights that nearly 25 per cent of AI learners now come from non-technical backgrounds, indicating growing interest outside engineering and technology. It adds that barely 50 per cent of AI-enabled career outcomes are now in fields beyond traditional engineering roles, including leadership, consulting, human resources, marketing, finance, and academia.
Geographically, the AI talent pipeline is diversifying, with nearly one in five learners from Tier-II cities such as Lucknow, Patna, Coimbatore, Jaipur, Indore, and Nagpur. However, major metros continue to dominate: Bengaluru accounted for 19 per cent of AI learners, followed by Pune, Hyderabad, Mumbai, and Chennai.
On career progression, the report states that AI upskilling delivered an average salary increase of 147 per cent across experience levels. Early-career professionals registered the highest percentage growth, while vice-presidents, chief officers, and engineering leaders reported the highest post-upskilling salaries at an average of Rs 33 lakh per annum. Software engineering emerged as the most common AI career outcome, followed by engineering leadership.
The report concludes that AI is evolving from a specialised technical skill into a broader workforce capability, helping professionals improve productivity and unlock new opportunities.
