Interest in learning AI skills soars

Newly released usage data from the O'Reilly online learning platform reveals that interest in AI-related skills has surged dramatically, with the most pronounced usage increases seen in topics like prompt engineering (456 percent increase), AI principles (386 percent increase), and generative AI (289 percent increase).

Use of content about GitHub Copilot has seen a dramatic increase too, by an impressive 471 percent, reflecting developers’ enthusiasm for tools that enhance productivity.

There's been a decline in interest for GPT, however, which has seen a 13 percent drop in usage and a similar downward trend in searches, indicating that developers are prioritizing foundational AI knowledge over platform-specific skills to effectively navigate across various AI models such as Claude, Google's Gemini, and Llama.

AI hasn't been the only growth area, interest in governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) surged by 44 percent, while interest in compliance skills rose by 10 percent. Additionally, content related to application security grew by 17 percent, reflecting developers' commitment to securing all types of applications. The rise of the zero trust model, which saw a 13 percent increase in usage, illustrates a proactive approach to security that emphasizes strict authentication and access controls. Taken together, these trends indicate a significant shift toward comprehensive security strategies within organizations.

"This year marks a pivotal transition in technology, with AI evolving from generative capabilities to a transformative force reshaping how developers approach their craft," says Mike Loukides, vice president of emerging technology content at O'Reilly and the report's author. "As foundational skills gain prominence and organizations increasingly adopt comprehensive security practices, professionals must prioritize upskilling to effectively integrate these tools into their operations. The future is not about fearing AI's impact on jobs but in harnessing its potential to enhance productivity and drive innovation across industries."

Among other interesting findings, data engineering skills have experienced a 29 percent increase, but there has been a noticeable decline in traditional programming languages, with Python usage decreasing by 5.3 percent and Java dropping by 13 percent. However, Rust's usage trends stand out, winning over developers with a 9.6 percent increase.

Interest in cloud computing appears to have leveled off too, with content use for the major cloud providers and their certifications down across all categories except Google Cloud certifications, which experienced 2.2 percent growth.

You can get the full report from the O'Reilly site.

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