AI, DevSecOps, Data — who will really be hired in 2025
Trends in hiring technical specialists in Europe, USA and Ukrainian food companies
State of the IT market of Ukraine at the beginning of 2025
According to DOU's analysis, the first half of 2025 was the most successful period of the IT market since the beginning of the war: up to 6,000 jobs per month and the growth of the AI/ML category by 115% in six months — 132 AI/ML vacancies were opened in June. Demand for beginning-level specialists and remote positions increased by more than 18%, especially in Kiev and Lviv.
The Ukrainian cybersecurity industry is also showing rapid growth: the market volume is expected to reach $209 million by 2029 with an annual growth of over 8.5%.
Which specialists are currently in top demand?
AI/ML ROLES
There is a growing need for Machine Learning Engineer, Data Scientist, AI Product Manager, Prompt Engineer. Large product and service companies are creating up to 89% of new AI roles, although experienced candidates are lacking. The average salary of AI specialists exceeds $100,000, sometimes reaching $200,000, due to shortages and high salary expectations.
DEVSECOPS/CLOUD & DEVOPS ROLES
In Europe, DevOps and DevSecOps specialists are among the highest paid technical roles, especially in Germany, Switzerland and the Netherlands. Main areas: Kubernetes, Infrastructure as Code, CI/CD, security integration with DevOps workflows.
DATA ENGINEERING/DATA OPS
Demand is growing significantly: Data Engineers are becoming a key link in AI projects. Companies are looking to reduce the number of tools to a single stack, and AI is starting to drive self-optimization of data — agent approaches will grow threefold by 2025.
Europe and the United States: what global demand consists of
There is a shortage of AI engineers in the EU — a lot of research is held in the academic field, but there are not enough engineers ready to implement solutions. In the United States, corporations are actively investing in AI, although some of the current cutbacks are related to automation — the layoffs are mainly for entry-level roles and the reorientation of resources to AI initiatives. Meanwhile, the AI market is growing: Salesforce, SoftBank and other companies are actively creating thousands of relevant vacancies.
Cybersecurity at the forefront: 64% of tech or C-level managers consider cyber threats to be a major risk, and more than half are employed in these roles. Also, more and more C-level managers are investing in AI Upskilling, which is boosting the internal demand for DevSecOps Talent.
Analysis of Ukrainian demand vs global trends
- AI/ML Engineer
- Demand in Ukraine: +115% of vacancies, 132 in June.
- Global demand: $100—200K, high deficit.
- Commentary: The newest Ukrainian AI projects need such specialists.
- Data Engineer/DataOps
- Demand in Ukraine: $5,300 median salary.
- Global demand: Fast hiring in data areas.
- Commentary: Focus on consolidating data stacks, real-time AI-driven flows.
- DevSecOps/Site Reliability
- Demand in Ukraine: The growing demand for security.
- Global demand: TOP-Salaries in Germany, Switzerland.
- Commentary: Security-first approach and DevSecOps are on the rise in large projects.
- Cloud/Platform Engineer
- Demand in Ukraine: Often as part of DevOps roles.
- Global demand: $130-140K level in global companies.
- Commentary: Azure/AWS, IAC, GDPR, EU cloud compliance are important for global hiring.
CASE: INVOLVEMENT OF MIDDLE AI ENGINEER FOR UKRAINIAN SAAS PRODUCT
Customer's request:A product IT company developing SaaS solutions for business process automation needed a Middle AI Engineer with experience in Python, machine learning and data processing. It was important to find a candidate with a Ukrainian mentality who is willing to work remotely or in a hybrid way.
Complexity:
- The market of AI specialists in Ukraine is quite limited at the average level;
- Candidates often have no practical experience, but only theoretical knowledge;
- The client sought to find a specialist who would quickly merge into the team and give results.
Our Approach:
- Used deep search in LinkedIn, specialized IT communities and Safeline internal database;
- Conducted technical screening to select only those with practical experience in real AI projects;
- Organized a soft interview to assess the candidate's soft skills and motivation.
Result:
- 4 relevant candidates were presented to the client in 5 weeks;
- The client chose a specialist who, after a month, began to implement machine learning automation into the product;
- After a successful hire, we received a request to find a DevOps engineer to support the AI infrastructure.
Conclusion
2025 clearly demonstrates: the demand for AI, DevSecOps and Data Engineering continues to grow rapidly both in Ukraine and in the global market. Ukrainian food companies and European customers are increasingly looking for not just specialists, but experienced professionals with practical skills and understanding of modern technologies.
AI/ML engineers are not only about high salaries, but also about the unique opportunity to influence business development and innovation. DevSecOps remains a key link for ensuring product security and stability, especially in the SaaS and fintech sectors. Data Engineering and DataOps are gaining momentum, opening new horizons for automation and analytics.
Our Middle AI Engineer recruitment case for a SaaS product is a vivid example of how competent recruiting helps companies close challenging technical jobs, even in a constrained market.
For successful hiring in 2025, it is important:
- To evaluate the candidate comprehensively — technical skills, experience of real projects, as well as soft skills and motivation;
- Work with flexible cooperation formats — remote, hybrid, fractional;
- Engage professionals through professional networking and targeted search, not just traditional sites.