With many in the workforce, one’s interaction with artificial intelligence (AI) is a tricky love/hate relationship. AI has been responsible for many layoffs, due to companies seeking to eliminate unnecessary extras and streamline their processes to be more efficient, throwing many workers into the unknown of unemployment.

At the same time, AI is also a powerful tool for good, if you leverage it correctly within your career. AI was predicted by the World Economic Forum to add up to 97 million new jobs—a statistic that perhaps many of us have heard repeatedly in roundtables, conferences, summits, and in discussions and articles across the internet—but do you really appreciate what that means?

Let’s break down a couple examples of what artificial intelligence skills can do for your career, particularly where job opportunities and lucrative salaries are concerned:

How AI Boosts Your Salary In 2024

Per Indeed.com’s analysis of the top technical skills of 2024, Generative AI claimed the top spot in the list. Some talent and HR experts suggest that on average, when a professional receives a promotion, they receive a salary increase of up to 15%. However, Indeed analysts estimated that having this skill on your resume and in your career toolkit can boost your salary by up to 47%—that’s more than triple what you would earn by simply climbing the ladder to the next senior-level role.

Additionally, employers value AI so much and are so eager to incorporate it as part of their organizational workflows and processes, that they are literally scrambling for AI talent, since it is not as popular right now. In a recent AWS survey, 73% of employers stated that they consider hiring AI talent a top priority.

Finally, let’s not forget that the roles that require AI skills are usually pushing towards $100,000 or above this mark. Particular roles that are in demand, such as project management, product management, and even sales and marketing, call for strong AI skills to be able to undertake the work with the latest cutting-edge technology and work efficiently, and average six-figure salaries according to Salary.com.

Forbes19 Companies Hiring Remote Jobs That Pay $100,000+ In 2024

Can you now imagine what it would mean for your career success and financial future, if you developed AI skills too? Even better, what if you understood how to implement it within your specific field, role, and team workflows? This provides even greater value to your employer, and consequently increases your standing in the extremely competitive job market.

Instead of just studying generic AI courses and certifications (which are certainly a helpful starting point), why not take your exploration further and find courses that enable you to excel within your specific role?

5 Free AI Courses (Some With Certificates) In 2024

Here are some examples of free courses and certifications to start learning this year so that you can build high-income AI skills and take your career to the next level in 2025:

1. Microsoft Generative AI For Data Analysis Professional Certificate is available for free via Coursera if you require aid due to financial hardship, and is perfect if you are working in data.
2. Talking To AI: Prompt Engineering For Project Managers is offered for free to PMI (Project Management Institute) members only; otherwise it is extremely affordable, currently $19 at the time of writing.
3. AI Applications In People Management is part of the AI For Business specialization which is offered by the University of Pennsylvania via Coursera. This teaches you how to apply AI as an HR (human resources) professional.
4. Salesforce’s Trailhead resource teaches you a range of AI skills employers are looking for, totally free, from machine learning, to ethics. They also have a Salesforce AI Associate certification.
5. HubSpot’s AI For Marketing Course is a fantastic resource that is suitable for you regardless of your level in the marketing industry, and provides valuable insights on how to apply AI in marketing campaigns and content creation strategies.

As Maureen Chahill said recently at DeVry University’s CEO Roundtable discussing AI in the workforce, companies have the option to “buy, build, or borrow” AI skills and talent to help with its implementation. This means they can hire contractors to teach and/or consult them and their workforce; they can upskill their own from within; or they can “borrow” by contracting freelancers. Whichever option your current or future employer goes for when it comes to AI integration, your career stands to heavily benefit from learning industry and role-specific AI skills.