context: The PRC’s labour market is undergoing structural adjustment, as reflected in rising youth unemployment and weakening hiring capacity in traditional sectors, trends highlighted in the recent youth unemployment new high analysis. Graduate-job competition and skill mismatches are intensifying even as emerging industries expand. At the same time, AI-driven productivity shifts are reshaping employment structures and widening inequality, echoing themes raised in social security in the AI era and prompting discussion of more inclusive social protection and long-term human-capital development.
According to the 2025 AI Industry Talent Development Report by Zhaopin.com, in Q1–3 2025, both labour supply and demand in the PRC’s AI industry remained high, with recruitment postings up 3 percent y-o-y and the number of job seekers rising 39 percent.
AI-related hiring continues to expand, with recruitment and job-seeking activity rising across technical and application-oriented roles. Algorithm engineering remains the most specialised and highest-paid category, with employers seeking strong coding capability and advanced academic training. Hiring is concentrated in sectors with high technical intensity, including software, internet services, semiconductors and AI development. Monthly salaries for algorithm engineers average around C¥21,400, and career transitions into these roles remain limited to workers with similar technical backgrounds.
Demand is also increasing for data-oriented positions such as data labellers and AI trainers. These roles are characterised by lower thresholds and repetitive content processing, attracting jobseekers from administrative, customer service and moderation roles. Average monthly pay stands at around C¥6,479. Their expansion reflects the need to support model training and verticalised AI applications.
Product-facing roles are becoming more competitive. AI product managers require cross-disciplinary skills combining technical understanding, product design and user analysis. These positions show the highest competition ratio in the AI sector, at 68 applicants per vacancy, while average salaries approach C¥20,000. Employers note that cross-team coordination and application scenario identification have become core competencies.
Small and medium-sized enterprises dominate AI recruitment, accounting for over 80 percent of employer demand. Observers attribute this pattern to the growing availability of open-source frameworks and low-code tools that lower development thresholds, enabling smaller firms to prototype and commercialise specialised solutions. As AI adoption moves from general-purpose models toward scenario-based development, opportunities increasingly shift to niche implementation roles.