It pays to have AI skills — nearly $20,000 more per year on average.

A recent analysis by the job insight platform LightCast examined over a billion job postings, revealing that companies are actively seeking employees with AI expertise and are offering higher salaries for these skills.

“Employers are increasingly highlighting AI abilities in job ads and are willing to offer higher pay for them,” stated LightCast’s Head of Global Research, Elena Magrini, in an interview with CNBC.

The research indicated that positions requiring AI knowledge commanded salaries 28% higher, approximately $18,000 more, than those without AI requirements. Jobs asking for two or more AI skills saw a 43% salary increase.

The most significant pay disparities between employees with and without AI skills were observed in customer support, sales, and manufacturing fields.

LightCast identified over 300 AI-related skills, ranging from generative AI and AI ethics to robotics and autonomous driving. However, the most frequently requested AI skills were two widely-used ones: ChatGPT and Microsoft Copilot.

Unexpectedly, non-technical fields sought AI skills more than technical ones, as noted in LightCast’s findings. Since the introduction of ChatGPT in November 2022, the demand for generative AI skills in non-technical positions soared by 800%.

A recent report from The Wall Street Journal found that entry-level college graduates are getting six- or seven-figure salaries right out of school because of their proficiency with AI. Databricks, a data analytics firm, is planning to hire triple the number of recent graduates this year compared to last year because of these young workers’ ability to use AI, the company told The Journal.

While learning AI may give workers a boost in salary negotiations, the technology also has the potential to replace entry-level employees. A Stanford University study released last week found that AI-impacted jobs, like software developers, customer service representatives, and accountants, saw employment for workers ages 22 to 25 decline by 13% over the past three years.

“There’s definitely evidence that AI is beginning to have a big effect,” the study’s first author and Stanford Professor Erik Brynjolfsson told Axios about the report.