Twenty percent of Ukrainian IT specialists work abroad, while the total number of IT specialists in Ukraine increased to 307,000 from 285,000 in 2022, but the industry still faces many challenges. The information comes from the AI ecosystem report of Ukraine, covering talents, companies, and education research, prepared by the non-profit organization AI House and investment group Roosh, with the support of the Ministry of Digital Information.
“Active migration of specialists abroad as a result of war is leading to a shortage of qualified personnel in the domestic market, hindering the development of the industry,” the study states.
Overall, Ukraine ranks second among Central and Eastern European countries in terms of the number of IT specialists, followed by Poland with 600.7 thousand people.
The number of AI/ML (artificial intelligence/machine learning) specialists has increased fivefold over the past 10 years, reaching 5.2 thousand as of January 2024.
The most common professions among these specialists are Data Scientists and ML Engineers, which together account for 63% of all AI/ML industry professionals. These areas offer the highest salaries among IT specialties. The average salary of a junior specialist in Ukraine is $1-1.5 thousand, and a senior specialist earns $4.5 thousand.
Over the past 10 years, the number of product AI companies in Ukraine has increased by 3.7 times, reaching 183 by 2023, while the number of service AI companies has increased by 46% to 60. Over the past four years, 34 new companies specializing in artificial intelligence have been established. 55% of Ukrainian AI company offices are located in Kyiv.
Ukraine ranks last among Central and Eastern European countries in terms of venture capital investments over the past three years. Poland, Lithuania, and Czechia lead in attracting 12-16 times more funding than Ukraine. This may be influenced by Russia’s full-scale invasion and the registration of Ukrainian companies in European countries or the United States.
In 2023, the amount of venture capital investments that 22 Ukrainian companies managed to attract decreased by 31% to $10.8 million compared to 2022, reflecting the global trend of declining investments. The war also complicates the negotiation process between startups and potential investors.
It was previously reported that by the end of 2023, the export of services brought Ukrainian IT companies $6.7 billion, a decrease of 8.5%, marking the first decline in 13 years.