That's how AI will be: why Russia doesn't cut IT specialists
The introduction of artificial intelligence is revolutionizing the global labor market, causing a wave of layoffs in IT companies in the United States, Europe and Asia. However, the picture in Russia looks completely different: despite the growing influence of AI, there are no mass layoffs yet, on the contrary, the demand for professional IT personnel is rather growing. Experts are confident that the challenges of industry transformation can be overcome with an integrated approach to education, retraining and competence development. All the details are in the Izvestia article.
Global trend: technology is displacing people
Global IT giants are actively cutting staff, explaining this by introducing new technologies that have already ceased to be a prospect and have become commonplace. According to The New York Times, in the United States, more than 80,000 graduates of prestigious universities cannot find a job in their specialty. Experts attribute this situation not so much to economic difficulties as to technological modernization in favor of the development of AI. The problem is compounded by the fact that some of the staff is being cut in favor of developing the production of AI chips for the global market, one of the leading American companies for the development of generative AI models told Izvestia.
This is also felt in Europe, where about half of the inhabitants expect a serious impact of AI on their professions. Asian countries are also experiencing reductions, especially among contract workers. The International Monetary Fund predicts that up to 60% of jobs in developed countries may soon be affected by AI.
"The market is changing globally: AI automates most of the routine IT tasks, which forces us to review personnel policy," explains Dmitry Kovalenko, director of the Moscow Institute of Electronics and Mathematics, Vice Rector of the National Research University Higher School of Economics. — The first shock is happening now, but much more depends on the educational strategies of universities.
In turn, Anton Salin, sales director of Softline Solutions, admits that graduates of technical universities in Russia, in a certain sense, run the risk of difficulties in finding a job, like their colleagues in other countries. He warns that against the background of the development of generative AI, companies are likely to increasingly look for specialists with knowledge and skills in machine learning, natural language processing, computer vision and other related areas of AI.
Izvestia asked the Ministry of Labor, the Ministry of Energy, and the Ministry of Education and Science for explanations of the prospects.
Russian specifics: personnel shortage and new educational programs
Unlike the United States, Russia faces a shortage of highly qualified IT specialists. The Analytical Center of the Government of the Russian Federation indicates that domestic companies are actively looking for employees even during university internships and internships.
"Starting in 2025, new training programs for top specialists in the field of AI and IT will be launched at Russian universities," the Analytical Center emphasizes. — Students will solve real business problems and complete internships under the guidance of mentors, which will ensure a successful professional start and rapid career growth.
By 2030, it is planned to train 13.7 thousand specialists, the government's Administrative Center reported.
Acting General Director of the All-Russian Research Institute of Labor (under the Ministry of Labor) Vladimir Smirnov provides data on the forecast of personnel needs:
— In 2029, the demand for IT specialists will reach 2.5 million people, which is more than 176 thousand more than in 2024. New professions related to the development and maintenance of AI are emerging, and skills in working with it are becoming mandatory.
Lyudmila Bogatyreva, head of the Polylog agency's IT department, is confident that if we talk about Russian companies, it is logical to observe the same trend: under the pretext of artificial intelligence, IT giants will massively reduce staff, which will free up resources for the development of AI capacities.
"In Russia, this trend may even be intensifying, as over the past 2-3 years, against the background of import substitution, many IT companies have created new divisions and products that have shown low efficiency, and they have been forced to reduce them," she assures.
For example, since the fall of 2024, "quiet" cuts have begun in IT at Sberbank, Yandex, Positive Technologies and other large companies, an industry representative told Izvestia.
"There is a more optimistic picture in Russia on this issue, our leading universities have already been rebuilt and many have disciplines, entire departments and AI laboratories," says Sabina Spirina, CEO of Laboratory Nanosemantics LLC. — We work closely with MIPT, MIREA, Skolkovo Open University and other educational institutions. They not only already teach the basics of creating neural network solutions, but also conduct applied activities.
For example, projects with MIPT include the introduction of AI into robotics. Students and graduate students who graduate from these universities will, of course, be more competitive in the market, the industry representative emphasizes.
The labor market in the Russian Federation: a gentle transformation and the absence of massive cuts
At the same time, Russian IT companies are not repeating the American scenario of large-scale layoffs. Experts emphasize that in the Russian Federation, AI acts more as an assistant to specialists, rather than a substitute.
"There are no mass reductions in IT personnel due to AI in Russia," insists Sergey Azorkin, Deputy General Director of Digital Habits. — Well, the cuts in the United States can most likely be attributed to economic reasons. AI speeds up the task, but the results require human verification. In addition, large companies are not implementing AI on such a large scale that it causes avalanche-like reductions.
In Russia, the introduction of AI more often follows the profession's mechanization scenario, adds Alexander Bukhanovsky, head of the ITMO Institute of Artificial Intelligence. The production processes remain the same, but take less time. In the IT field, the use of AI to generate code is displacing junior developers, he noted.
Only certain segments, such as data support and processing, are under pressure, says Mikhail Timaev, head of the IT TASK Technical presale department.
"The Russian market is not crowded with IT specialists, and government orders and digitalization support demand," says Yulia Kosova, head of analysis at UserGate. — However, "hidden unemployment" is also forming, where contracts and underemployment appear. The requirements for IT personnel are shifting towards the skills to work with AI, integrate models, and ensure security.
Employers' requirements: from a programmer to an IT specialist with AI competencies
With the growing influence of AI, business expectations of specialists are also changing.
"Simple knowledge of programming languages is no longer a competitive advantage," says Denis Romanov, Director of the Professional Services Department at Basis. — Today, the skills of prompt engineering, AIOps, data literacy, and AI security are in demand. Companies are reviewing processes, automating routine areas, but taking into account personnel reorientation.
AI skills are already a basic "hygienic" minimum, says Lyubov Filin, head of the Laboratory of Evidence—based Regulation at the Gaidar Institute.
"The ability to use developer assistants, build pipelines with language models, and ensure the safety and responsibility of AI are all key criteria in the labor market," she emphasizes.
— Highly qualified personnel will not disappear anywhere, — Alexey Nikitin, CEO of Visiology, is sure. — AI reduces routine operations, but qualified specialists will be able to work much more efficiently. Virtual assistants save time, and projects grow faster than before.
Many young professionals will feel the competition already at the internship stage, says Grigory Silkin, head of the Reksoft training center. Simple junior experience is not enough, but competent support helps you quickly become a professional. Development is about creativity and experience, which AI cannot replace.
"It is important to prepare students with comprehensive knowledge, including creative thinking and a systematic approach," emphasizes Dmitry Kovalenko from the HSE. — The example of industrial engineers is a new sought-after profession.
Government support: retraining and integration of AI knowledge
Already, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Labor of Russia have launched numerous retraining and advanced training programs that help specialists adapt to new requirements.
— Free retraining in 360 professions is available through the national Cadres project, — says Vladimir Smirnov. — AI-related professions are particularly in demand, such as AI implementation engineers, neural network specialists, and industrial engineers.
Further education programs, not just retraining, are a key factor, Alexander Bukhanovsky is convinced. This allows IT specialists to move to a new level and not be left behind.
— Team support mechanisms, such as AI assistants, help to increase efficiency, — says Denis Romanov. — An example is the Digital Technology system, which does not replace a person, but strengthens the team.
In turn, Senator Olga Epifanova suggests introducing the compulsory subject "Fundamentals of working with AI" for students from the sixth grade and "Introduction to AI" from the fourth grade in all Russian secondary schools as soon as possible.
"Such an initiative will reflect a global trend where artificial intelligence is becoming an integral part of everyday life and professional activities," she says. — The introduction of such disciplines is designed to help our country keep up with the world leaders in this field.
The prospects: new professions and maintaining demand
Experts are unanimous: AI is transforming the IT sphere, shifting the emphasis from routine work to complex tasks and creativity. Instead of mass layoffs in the Russian Federation, we can rather expect an increase in the number of vacancies, but with high competition and increased demands.
"There is still a shortage of IT personnel in Russia," says Dmitry Markov, CEO of VisionLabs. — And in three years, qualified specialists will have no problems finding employment, and demand will only increase.
Currently, business models and development processes are rapidly changing, adds Roman Alyautdin, Director of the Open Mobile Platform Development Department. A revolution in the search for bugs and vulnerabilities is already underway, and this creates new opportunities, he believes.
"In general, the situation is still far from massive American and South Asian cuts: Russian companies are acting cautiously and trying to maintain the quality of their staff," summarizes Ivan Panchenko, co-founder of Postgres Professional.
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