Talk about artificial intelligence is everywhere in the UAE, from boardrooms to job adverts. Yet when employers in the Emirates write down what they actually want from a new hire, AI is still not in the top ten.
A new study of thousands of job adverts shows that the skills employers ask for most are far more human: the ability to communicate, work in a team and lead others.
The UAE Skills Index, released by professional training provider Informa Connect Academy, looked at 4,706 job adverts posted on LinkedIn between 1 August and 29 September. It counted 57 skills across four groups, and each skill was counted only once per advert, with duplicate listings removed.
The result is a snapshot of what UAE employers are really asking for right now, and it does not match the hype.
What 4,706 job adverts actually asked for
Communication came first by a wide margin, appearing in 59.1 per cent of adverts. Teamwork followed at 41.7 per cent, then leadership at 32.7 per cent.
English came next at 26.3 per cent, followed by budgeting at 24.4 per cent and problem solving at 20.7 per cent.
Arabic and attention to detail tied at 16.5 per cent each, while stakeholder management and Excel both appeared in 15.8 per cent of adverts. Artificial intelligence, the skill that dominates so much of the conversation about work, ranked 13th, mentioned in 15.2 per cent of adverts, just behind Excel.
The rankings show how often a skill was named, not how much weight an employer gave it when choosing between candidates.
AI demand depends heavily on the job
The picture changes a lot when you look at different kinds of work. More than half of data and analytics adverts, 56.6 per cent, asked for at least one AI-related skill.
In IT and technology the figure was 29.4 per cent, in marketing 18.4 per cent, and in sales and business development 15.7 per cent.
In finance and accounting, only 5.7 per cent of adverts asked for AI skills, and in project management the figure was 8.3 per cent. Across all professions, 15.9 per cent of listings asked for at least one AI-related skill, such as artificial intelligence, machine learning or generative AI.
ChatGPT, the tool most people picture when they think of AI at work, was named in just 27 adverts, or 0.6 per cent of the total.
People skills matter most at the start of a career
For people entering the job market, the message is even clearer. Communication appeared in 67.6 per cent of entry-level adverts, the highest share at any seniority level.
English was the next most common requirement for new starters, at 35.3 per cent.
Communication was also the most requested skill in all 11 industries the study covered, including real estate, hospitality, banking and technology. In real estate it appeared in 72.2 per cent of adverts.
At the other end of the ladder, leadership took over: it appeared in 70.4 per cent of adverts for senior managers and directors, against 43.9 per cent at manager level.
What the hiring gap means for UAE startups and jobseekers
This study should calm a lot of nerves, and it should also worry a few people. For jobseekers, the message is that learning to use AI tools is useful, but it is not a shortcut past the basics.
An employer still has to trust you to explain an idea, listen to a client and work inside a team, and no AI certificate proves any of that.
For startups, the finding cuts both ways. A small team that hires for communication and problem solving first will get further than one that chases AI skills and hopes the rest follows.
But the gap between data roles, where AI is now expected, and the rest of the market will not stay this wide for long. The sensible move is to treat AI as a skill to add on top of strong people skills, not as a replacement for them.
The employers in this study are not anti-AI. They are simply telling us what they need first, and it is worth listening.
