Talent500 survey: 71% of tech workers want hands-on AI, 29% get it

Most Indian tech professionals want to learn artificial intelligence (AI) by working on it, but few say their employer gives them the chance. That is the main finding of "What Talent Wants 2026", a survey of 2,000 tech, product and data professionals across India released in October 2026 by Talent500, a hiring platform that is part of ANSR, a firm that helps companies set up Global Capability Centres (GCCs) in India. According to the report, 71% of respondents said hands-on AI upskilling is important to them, while only 29% said their current employer actually provides it. The company says this is the widest gap between what workers expect and what employers deliver among the six workplace factors it measured.

The findings describe a skills problem that employers and employees see differently. Companies have spent heavily on AI training in the form of online courses, webinars and certificates. The survey suggests that this is not what workers value most. They want to be put on projects where AI tools are part of the actual job: writing code with an AI assistant, building a model, or using AI in customer work. A certificate shows that someone attended a course; real project work is what a future employer asks about in an interview.

For anyone building a tech career, this matters in two ways. First, it signals what will separate candidates in the next few years. As AI tools spread through software development, testing, data work and support, employers will look for people who can show they have used them on real problems. Second, it gives job-seekers a practical question to ask in interviews: will I get to work on AI in this role, and how? A company that can answer that clearly is offering something most respondents say they are not getting.

The survey also shows how much candidates now research employers. Nearly all respondents look a company up on LinkedIn before applying, and almost one in three now uses an AI assistant to do that research. Former employees, the report says, are the most trusted source of information about what working at a company is really like. For employers, including the Global Capability Centres competing for engineers, that means a vague careers page or a poor reputation among past staff can cost them applicants.

One caution: the figures come from the company's own survey and its summary as reported in the media. The full method, such as how respondents were chosen, was not published with the coverage, so the numbers are best read as a signal of mood, not a precise national measure.

Short-term: Tech workers who want AI experience may favour employers that put them on AI projects, and some may move jobs to get it. Recruiters are likely to highlight AI project work in job advertisements.

Long-term: If companies close the gap, more Indian engineers will gain practical AI experience, which strengthens India's position as a base for AI work. If they do not, skilled staff may keep moving to firms that offer it, raising hiring and retention costs.

Who is affected: Software engineers, data and product professionals, students preparing for tech jobs, IT services firms, Global Capability Centres and start-ups competing for talent.

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