Why Machine Learning Engineers Are Flocking to These 3 Non-Tech Industries

This is reflected clearly on the nextpit Job Board, where organizations like Booz Allen Hamilton, Blue Origin, Cohere Health, Lockheed Martin Corporation, and Leidos are almost always hiring.    

Follow the money

Machine learning engineers in particular are sought-after, and the short answer for why professionals are flocking to these industries is this: eye-popping salaries are on offer. 

A recent Bizreport study took a deep dive into AI salaries, and highlighted that Connecticut has the highest average AI wage at $178K, while Arizona had the highest salary listed for an AI role – $450K for a System AI Architect. 

Standard salaries for Machine Learning Engineers start at $100,000 and go beyond $300,000 for more senior positions. 

A reason why salaries are so high is that there is a huge skills gap in this area, so while ML expands to be a priority for businesses in all industries, there isn’t enough talent to fill these roles. Competition for talent is fierce, and it’s a jobseeker’s market. 

In fact, U.S. companies are having such a tricky time hiring that job site Indeed has launched a new Tech Network, to help them reach passive talent. These are professionals who are happy in their current roles, and need greater enticement to jump ship. 

AI-related jobs on the rise

Bizreport also says that in 2023, 30.3% of computer science jobs were AI-related, and in 2024, there will potentially be more than 131,000 AI-related jobs in the computer science market.

As OpenAI continues to raise funds and record-breaking AI-related stock valuations are achieved, the urgency for machine learning specialists is expected to continue. 

All this demand drives salaries upwards, and benefits packages expand further and further.

Interested in a new machine learning engineer position? Visit the nextpit Job Board and see what’s on offer today, like these three. 

In Seattle, ByteDance is hiring a Machine Learning Platform Engineer to develop and maintain its platform which supports deep learning models for code development, testing, training scheduling, model deployment, and other core business functions. The successful candidate will possess good communication and teamwork skills, and be proficient in Python, Java or C++, and will be rewarded with a salary between $129,960 - $246,240 a year.

Member-owned health insurance company HCSC is seeking a Lead Machine Learning Engineer for its Analytics & AI Solutions team in Chicago, which applies data science and ML to make healthcare more cost-effective and to improve outcomes. A Bachelor’s degree and at least five years’ work experience is required in computer science, engineering or related fields, or a master’s degree with four years’ experience, or a Ph.D. and two years’ work experience. 

Fintech Plaid in San Francisco is looking for an Experienced Machine Learning Engineer to lead its efforts to build and deploy diverse and high-impact machine learning solutions and systems that are also scalable. You’ll need experience in working with product, design, and backend engineering, as well as with Python/Spark/Airflow/DBT/Hive/Presto/AWS. Target base salary for this role is between $205,900 and $308,900 per year, while benefits, equity and commission are dependent on the position offered. 

Start your job search today via the nextpit Job Board. This article was written by Amanda Kavanagh.