AI skills supply and demand

The Joint Research Centre’s 2025 report AI Skills Supply and Demand analyses the match between AI-related education and training in Europe and labour market demand using data from Studyportals and online job advertisements. It finds a general alignment between the two, but both remain heavily concentrated in ICT fields, with weak integration of AI skills in areas such as health, agriculture, and social sciences. Most EU master’s programmes and short courses focus on machine learning (32%), generic AI (26%), and AI ethics (10%), while generative AI accounts for less than 2%, indicating a lag in addressing emerging technologies.

Short professional courses, often linked to micro-credentials, are increasingly used for rapid reskilling and upskilling, helping professionals adapt to fast-evolving AI roles. On the demand side, AI-related job postings are dominated by software developers, data analysts, data engineers, and AI/ML engineers, which together make up nearly all AI-specific roles. The study observes that AI ethics appears in education but rarely in job ads, suggesting universities are ahead of industry in anticipating future skill needs.

The report concludes that while Europe’s AI talent pipeline is broadly aligned with demand, future gaps could emerge if AI training remains confined to ICT. It calls for multidisciplinary integration of AI across sectors, modular learning pathways, and ongoing monitoring of generative AI and ethical governance skills to sustain Europe’s competitiveness and technological sovereignty.