AI salaries in UAE compete with US but a skills gap remains

The UAE is increasingly attracting global artificial intelligence engineers with competitive, tax-free salaries, although the US still leads in absolute numbers.

The Gulf country aims to become a global AI hub but is struggling with a shortage of talent, like much of the world, to reach its goal.

“In most cases, salaries are on par and sometimes slightly higher than the US,” said John Armstrong, a Dubai-based tech recruiter at JCA Associates. “A senior AI engineer could expect to earn around Dh35,000 [$9,530] a month upwards [in the UAE]."

Industry data suggests the gap could be wider. Levels.fyi, a salary transparency platform, calculates the median annual package for AI engineers in the US at about Dh890,000, (Dh74,000 per month) rising to Dh1.03 million at Google and above Dh1.1 million at some fast-growing AI start-ups.

Despite the major disparity, the tax-free element in the UAE makes the package attractive for international talent. Although US citizens are still liable for income tax while working abroad.

While the UAE offers competitive pay, compensation structures here often differ from Silicon Valley. “It’s a lot less common here [to offer equity], except for start-ups,” Mr Armstrong noted.

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Salary ranges widen

Recruitment specialists say pay varies significantly depending on seniority.

Taha Esmail, vice president at AIQU, which is part of UAE-based TASC Recruitment, said that entry-level engineers typically earn Dh15,000 to Dh20,000 a month.

For midlevel professionals with five to 10 years of experience, salaries rise to Dh30,000 to Dh38,000.

At the top end, “senior or principal AI engineers, especially those with over 15 years of relevant experience, typically fall within the Dh50,000 to Dh65,000 per month range”.

Mr Esmail said the premium depends on specialisation, credentials and leadership track record. According to Levels.fyi, AI pay in the UAE is competitive but still trails leading markets.

While AI engineers in the US are earning a median of Dh890,000 annually, compensation in Europe is notably lower.

In cities such as London and Berlin, median annual pay is between Dh365,000 and Dh385,000, reported the salary platform.

In the UAE, leading employers are also competing for top-tier staff. At Abu Dhabi’s G42, a data scientist earns a median package of about Dh473,000 according to Levels.fyi, with most of it made up of base pay and bonuses rather than equity.

Machine-learning engineers at the company command about Dh408,000 a year, while senior data scientists across the Emirates generally fall between Dh360,000 and Dh538,000.

Recruitment drive

Recruiters say demand for AI professionals globally far outpaces supply, with companies competing for a small pool of candidates.

Mr Armstrong pointed to strong hiring needs in telecoms and cyber security.

“We are seeing a demand for AI architects in the telecom sector as well as developers with TensorFlow and Python,” he said. “In general, AI, data centres and cyber security are hot topics right now.”

To address the shortage, companies are turning to international recruitment drives and new tools.

“Hiring teams are investing more in recruitment technology [including AI] and developing new strategies to attract talent from abroad,” Mr Armstrong said.

For niche roles, he added, specialist recruitment companies with international networks are often brought in.

Highest demand skills

Mr Esmail said machine-learning engineering, computer vision and natural language processing are among the most sought-after fields.

“Among the top AI skills commanding demand and high compensation are machine learning engineering, computer vision, and natural language processing,” he said.

Employers also value proficiency in Python, TensorFlow and PyTorch, plus MLOps and cloud expertise (AWS, Azure and Google Cloud).

He noted rising demand for emerging specialities, including autonomous AI systems, AI agents and frameworks like LangChain.

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Moussa Beidas, partner and ideation lead at PwC Middle East, also added that the hottest demand areas mirror global trends: “generative AI engineering, MLOps and LLMOps for model deployment and scaling, data engineering for modern AI stacks, and governance around risk, safety, and privacy”.

Building the next generation

Universities in the UAE are stepping up to prepare graduates for AI careers.

Fiona Robson, head of Edinburgh Business School and School of Social Sciences at Heriot-Watt University Dubai, said institutions are updating their curriculums so that AI becomes “the new norm”. She stressed that this process must be systematic and continuing, given the pace of change.

Beyond the classroom, institutions are deepening ties with industry to bridge the skills gap.

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“Universities should be working hand-in-hand with industry to understand their needs and incorporate this within their programmes so that students are future-ready,” Ms Robson said.

She added that academics are being supported to enhance their AI knowledge so they can “support the AI users of the future”.

While R&D remains emergent in parts of the UAE, she said collaboration can help both sides: “Working with industry and having access to their research and development functions can be very fruitful in helping academics understand industry focus.”

Global competition and local fixes

Mr Beidas noted that while the UAE may not yet match the US or Europe in absolute numbers, “its pace of adoption is remarkable”. He said professionals in the Emirates are among the highest globally in terms of regular AI tool usage.

A recent LinkedIn study found that AI usage among UAE professionals rose from 56 per cent to 80 per cent in just one year, placing the country second globally behind India.

“Combined with the government’s top-down initiatives and major infrastructure investments, this is helping to close the gap quickly and position the UAE as one of the most dynamic AI markets worldwide.”

On compensation, he said that cash and allowances remain the norm, but start-ups and free zone entities, especially in AI and tech, are increasingly using employee stock ownership plans.

“It’s still not universal, but the legal and regulatory frameworks are in place, and we expect adoption to grow,” he said.

The talent shortage is particularly acute at the senior end. “There is definitely pressure at the experienced end, particularly for MLOps, LLM application engineers, and AI product leaders,” Mr Beidas said.

He pointed to initiatives such as Dubai’s One Million Prompters programme, academic pipelines through MBZUAI, and Golden Visas as tools being used to attract and retain talent.

Outlook

Despite current gaps, recruiters and analysts expect pay to keep rising.

“As demand increases both locally and regionally, I would foresee a steady rise in salaries and benefits over the next 12 to 24 months,” Mr Armstrong said.

Mr Beidas agreed that the coming years will bring “sustained demand growth, particularly in generative AI, deployment operations, and governance”.

He said there will probably be “continued salary pressure at the senior and specialist levels”, but large-scale training, academic partnerships and government programmes should help stabilise the broader market.

The real test will be whether the UAE can evolve from being a fast adopter of AI technologies to a source of original research.

If it succeeds, the region’s role in the global AI race and the career prospects of its AI professionals could change dramatically.