Written by

Liz Ticong

Published January 31, 2025

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AI is changing the world around us and it shows no signs of slowing down. With this technology becoming such a prominent part of our future, knowing how to start a career in AI is a smart move for anyone looking to stay ahead. Industries like technology, finance, and healthcare are relying more heavily on AI, and launching your career in the field means safeguarding your future. To help you get started. I’ve built this guide with the important steps to begin your AI career, including the career paths you can explore, the skills you need, and certifications that can set you on the right track.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• •Building core skills—including technical and soft skills—will help you jumpstart your career in AI. (Jump to Section)
• •Actively applying your knowledge by working with AI tools can refine your skills, deepen your understanding of AI, and act as a catalyst for crafting your portfolio. (Jump to Section)
• •There are many AI certifications you can invest in to further advance your skills and improve your credibility. (Jump to Section)

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Understand the AI Basics

The first step in building a successful career in artificial intelligence (AI) is truly understanding what it is. Grasping its main concepts will let you see its impact on industries and everyday life, from customer service to entertainment. This knowledge will guide your decisions as you move forward and give you a solid foundation to identify the skills you need, the different AI jobs, and finally choose the direction that aligns with your goals.

Choose Your AI Career Path

AI offers a wide range of career opportunities, each with its own set of required skills, tasks and responsibilities, and job salaries. It’s imperative to familiarize yourself with various AI roles early on. If you’re just getting started, consider exploring entry-level AI jobs to get hands-on experience and serve as stepping stones to more advanced roles later on. Knowing the demands of each career gives you clarity on what skills you need to focus on. By choosing the career you want, you can narrow down your learning path and start working on the specific skills for that role.

Build Core Skills

Like most jobs, starting AI careers requires a combination of technical and soft skills. Whether you’re just starting out or aiming for an advanced role, having a solid foundation is a must. Invest in AI certifications to boost your knowledge about AI as a whole. Core skills not only prepare you for entry-level jobs but also make you adapt more easily with the field as it evolves.

Technical Skills for Different AI Careers

Technical skills are non-negotiable when it comes to kicking off your AI career. You must enrich your knowledge in AI-related topics, such as machine learning (ML) and natural language processing (NLP). These skills equip you to work with data, algorithms, and systems, which are the primary components of AI. Learning them may feel daunting at first, but it will guide you to long-term success. There are many ways you can learn AI for free, but completing paid courses usually gives you a certificate that can raise your chances of getting a good AI job.

• Computer Vision: Mastering computer vision techniques enables you to work on systems that analyze and interpret images or videos. This is a primary skill for computer vision technicians, so they can make systems for facial recognition, self-driving cars, and medical imaging.
• Data Analysis: The ability to clean, organize, and interpret data is beneficial for an AI career. It is especially useful for data engineers and data scientists, who need to extract meaningful data insights and transform them into usable formats for AI systems.
• Data Engineering: Understanding how to design and maintain data pipelines is making sure AI systems have access to clean, structured data. This skill is fundamental for data engineers because they lay the groundwork for AI development by preparing datasets for analysis and modeling.
• Machine Learning Basics: Familiarity with machine learning algorithms and concepts is necessary for ML engineers and data scientists. It allows you to create systems that learn from data and fine-tune their performance over time.
• Natural Language Processing: Learning how AI systems generate human language is needed for NLP assistant and prompt engineers. It opens opportunities to make AI models for translation, sentiment analysis, and prompt engineering.
• Programming: Developing strong programming skills will supercharge any AI career. Languages like Python are widely used by support engineers and data scientists to implement algorithms, process data, and craft AI applications.
• Prompt Optimization: Crafting precise instructions for generative AI tools is a useful skill for prompt engineers, as they work to steer these systems to produce accurate and targeted outputs.
• Research Techniques: You must be able to explore new methods, test algorithms, and evaluate results to advance in AI. AI researchers and AI research assistants need research skills to uncover new approaches to enhance existing AI technologies.

Soft Skills Required for an AI Career

No matter your chosen career path in AI, technical expertise alone is not enough to succeed. Soft skills play a significant role in supporting teamwork, resolving problems creatively, and bridging the gap between AI solutions and real-world applications.

• Adaptability: Being open to learning new tools and methods lets you stay relevant and updated on the latest about AI.
• Collaboration: Working well with others is important because most AI projects require input from multiple people with different skills and expertise.
• Communication: Clearly explaining technical concepts to non-technical audiences helps make sure everyone understands your work and its value.
• Critical Thinking: The ability to assess situations carefully, spot problems, and make decisions is needed for solving challenges effectively.
• Problem-Solving: Tackling difficult situations and coming up with workable solutions is key to making your projects succeed.

Practice Your Skills and Create Your Portfolio

To jumpstart your AI career, actively apply what you’ve learned through practice and work on real projects to truly enrich your skills. You could begin with personal projects, contributing to open-source initiatives, or using publicly available datasets to experiment with AI models. You can even try using some free AI tools to get a firsthand experience without spending anything. Practicing allows you to see how AI works in real-world settings, so you can understand the challenges that can’t be taught in a classroom.

In addition, while practicing, you can build a portfolio of work to demonstrate your abilities to future employers. As you continue practicing, you’ll sharpen your problem-solving skills, boost your technical knowledge, and gain the experience necessary to move forward in your AI career.

Network and Develop Professional Relationships

Expanding your professional network plays a substantial role in thriving in the AI field. By connecting with more professionals, you get more job opportunities, insights, and collaborations. Attending AI conferences and joining online communities keeps you informed and enhances your skills. Networking can also provide mentorship and guidance, accelerating your career growth.

Top AI Certifications for Beginners

Getting certified can be a powerful way to demonstrate your skills and knowledge as you start your AI career. AI certifications for beginners will increase your credibility, combining structured learning with practical experience. I’ve selected a few courses that establish a solid grounding in AI, each handpicked so you can strengthen your skillset and set yourself up for success.

Artificial Intelligence for Beginners: Understand the Basics on Udemy

This Udemy course offers a comprehensive, beginner-friendly introduction to AI concepts and requires no programming background. Priced at $69.99, it features 20 lectures, assignments, and on-demand video content, ensuring a well-rounded learning experience. This introductory course covers AI history, topics such as regression and clustering, and practical AI applications. You will use a no-code approach to create AI models for image pose and audio detection to gain hands-on customization experience. With just minimal prerequisites of computer knowledge, the course is accessible and can be completed in about five hours.

Visit Artificial Intelligence for Beginners: Understand the Basics on Udemy

Artificial Intelligence for Beginners: Python and AI Basics on Udemy

Udemy’s course is great if you’re looking to explore the principles of AI and Python programming, even without prior experience. The course is 10 hours and 14 minutes long and includes 26 lectures on topics like regression, classification, and neural networks. While programming knowledge isn’t required, an understanding of programming concepts can be advantageous. Available for $79.99, the course includes on-demand videos, hands-on coding exercises, and quizzes to test your knowledge. By the end, you’ll be able to create AI models and an interactive game using Python, along with a certificate of completion.

Visit Artificial Intelligence for Beginners: Python and AI Basics on Udemy

Introduction to Artificial Intelligence on Coursera

IBM’s course on Coursera is a great starting point if you want to learn more about AI. The course explores AI’s central concepts, its real-world applications, and examples you encounter daily. It encompasses machine learning, deep learning, and neural networks, as well as how AI is used in various areas, like robotics and computer vision. Ethical issues and the potential impact of AI on society are also discussed. The course is self-paced, taking approximately 13 hours to complete, with flexible deadlines. Organized into four modules, it includes 12 assignments. After finishing, you’ll receive a shareable certificate. A monthly subscription of $59 to Coursera Plus is needed to access this course.

Visit Introduction to Artificial Intelligence on Coursera

FAQs

Can I Work in AI Without Coding?

Yes, you can work in AI without coding. Roles like AI product manager, AI consultant, or AI business analyst focus more on strategy, project management, and business integrations rather than programming. However, some understanding of AI concepts is still beneficial.

Can I Get an AI Job Without a Degree?

Yes, it is possible to get an AI job without a degree. Many entry-level positions value practical skills, experience, and certifications over formal education. Building a strong portfolio, obtaining hands-on experience, and earning relevant certifications can help you qualify for AI roles.

How Much Do Jobs in AI Pay?

AI job salaries vary depending on the role, location, experience level. According to ZipRecruiter, entry-level AI jobs in the US typically pay around $66,000 to $84,000 annually, as of January 2025. Senior positions, on the other hand, like AI Research Scientists, average between $126,000and $137,500 per year, with top earners making up to $171,000 yearly.

Bottom Line: The Value of Knowing How to Start A Career in AI

Embarking in careers in artificial intelligence molds you to be a part of a field that redefines our lives today. Keep in mind that establishing an AI career is just like launching any other career, you have to start from the ground up. This guide was built so you can prepare your AI career with confidence, no matter your background. By learning the core AI skills and gaining practical experience, you equip yourself with future-proof skills and open doors to innovative and impactful opportunities.

Find out more about how AI is impacting the job market by reading our articles on will AI replace humans, AI-proof jobs, and jobs AI will replace.

Liz Ticong

Liz Ticong is a staff writer for eWEEk with more than 10 years of experience covering technology, software, and news. She’s written about AI, cybersecurity, data, and various software products for Datamation, Enterprise Networking Planet, and TechnologyAdvice.com, and has ghostwritten for international clients. When not writing, you can find her reading and watching historical and investigative documentaries. She is based in the Philippines.