America’s AI Hubs: The Best States for AI Jobs in 2024

It’s the old machine-replacing-people story we know all too well. But while some types of job descriptions may take a hit, the surge in generative AI has actually doubled global AI-related job postings from July 2021 to July 2023, according to LinkedIn data.

And, where to find those jobs is changing. As AI companies make their own big moves in which states are they offering up job opportunities?

Will AI job seekers head to states like Virginia, Massachusetts, and Texas? In fact, Apple recently declared their San Diego AI team is relocating to Austin.

Or will we see moves heading back to California —San Francisco is seeking a comeback as the world’s “AI capital,” after all.

This new moveBuddha analysis looks at Jan 2024 Indeed and ZipRecruiter data to unveil this year’s best and worst states for AI jobs in the United States.

Key Takeaways

• #1 California has about 4 AI job postings for every 10,000 residents, equal to nearly a quarter of all listed on Indeed as of January 2024.
• 5 Northeastern and East Coast states are in the top 10: #2 Virginia, #4 Maryland, #7 Massachusetts, #8 Pennsylvania, and #10 North Carolina. Together, with 21% of total US AI job opportunities, they almost match California’s 23%.
• At #5, Texas is a growing force for AI job offerings, thanks to drawing in Tech companies and talent in recent years.
• Washington offers the highest average salary for wage for AI engineers at $117K.

America’s AI hotspots

With Mountainview’s Google alumni christened the superlatives like “the Godfather of AI” and AI billed as a potential rescue plan for the California economy, it’s only natural that California tops the list, with a long history in AI and a staggering number of jobs in the industry per capita. But other states are vying for the next-generation AI title.

That includes a significant number of East Coast up-and-comers that might surprise you. From Virginia, competing for federal AI startup grants, to Maryland, which has already secured funding to grow AI firms, which states currently offer the most AI jobs?

The top 10 states for AI jobs opportunities in 2024 are:

1. California
2. Virginia
3. Washington
4. Maryland
5. Texas
6. Colorado
7. Massachusetts
8. Pennsylvania
9. Missouri
10. North Carolina

Capitalizing on the AI Innovation Boom

In the ever-evolving landscape of AI, the future job market is set to change.

Anticipated to replace 85 million jobs by 2025, AI also promises to generate 97 million new opportunities, creating a dynamic shift. From AI trainer to editor, data analyst, ethics officer, and engineer, jobs built on harnessing AI’s efficiencies are proliferating. You could even become a “personal memory curator.”

One thing’s for certain: as concerns about automation persist, mastering AI becomes a key strategy for career resilience.

Whether eyeing AI hubs like California or exploring emerging destinations such as Texas, Missouri, and North Carolina, professionals should navigate wisely. While some states embrace AI innovation, others present limited job prospects.

The next decade will unveil whether the AI boom persists or succumbs to a potential "AI Winter," shaping the future of work in unpredictable ways.

Methodology

To determine the best and worst states for AI professionals in 2024, we scored and ranked the following factors:

Proportion of AI job opportunities in each state: Collected and counted AI-related job postings from Indeed in January 2024. The AI jobs counted for this analysis include searches for the following 12 jobs: AI engineer, AI developer, AI product manager, API integration specialis, Big data engineer, Human integration specialist, Machine learning engineer, Natural language processing engineer, Prompt engineer, AI data scientist, AI software engineer, and AI data engineer. 

AI jobs listings per capita: Using the state population (U.S. Census 2023 estimates) and estimated AI-jobs listed on Indeed (in Jan 2024), we scored and ranked each state by the number of AI jobs per 10,000 residents.

Salary: The average annual salary of an AI Engineer in each state in 2023, according to ZipRecruiter.

Scoring: The final ranking is the cumulative average score across all three factors. The states with the highest scores are ranked the best for AI professionals in 2024.