The rise of AI has become one of the most widely debated developments, sparking serious conversations about the future of work, globally and in Armenia. From fears of large-scale job displacement to projections of unprecedented job creation, AI is redefining labor markets worldwide. Put in numbers, the World Economic Forum projects that by 2030, 170 million new jobs are expected to emerge globally, while 92 million of the current jobs may be displaced by automation, highlighting a profound transformation of the labor market globally.
Within this global shift, Armenia’s workforce follows its own distinct trajectory. While emerging opportunities position the country to become a regional AI hub, persistent structural challenges remain that create deep imbalance. As the World Bank expects Armenia’s economic growth to stabilize at around 4.7% by 2027, one key question remains: what kinds of jobs will this growth generate, and for whom?
Trends and Indicators
Based on the yearly report of Armenia’s major recruiting platform staff.am, the country’s labor market in 2025 tells a story of quiet stabilization. The 20 most in-demand professions remained largely unchanged, with finance, banking, sales, and service roles dominating the landscape. These sectors, particularly those tied to customer interaction, remain the backbone of Armenia’s current hiring trends.
Armenia’s IT companies highlight a new reality. Before creating a vacancy, they now assess whether a task can be automated with AI. As a result, hiring has shifted toward non-technical roles, such as customer success, support, sales, and operations.
Concurrently, the gradual decline of the once-dominant IT sector alongside the rise of non-IT professions, opens opportunities across a wider range of industries. As AGBU Learn to Earn Armenia Program (LEAP) Manager Astine Badeyan notes based on AGBU research on the labor market, “Armenia’s IT companies highlight a new reality. Before creating a vacancy, they now assess whether a task can be automated with AI. As a result, hiring has shifted toward non-technical roles, such as customer service, support, sales, and operations. Demand remains for data analysts and QAs, but these require pre-existing technical foundations.”
Underlying Insights
Armenia’s National Employment Strategy (2025–2031) points to persistent shortages across a wide range of roles, including accountants, financial service and customer support staff, sales specialists, risk and credit analysts, among others. Despite these vacancies, the unemployment rate remained at around 12% in 2025, pointing to a greater imbalance particularly of technical expertise and soft skills required in a rapidly evolving economy. As AI expands across industries, this gap continues to widen, highlighting not simply a shortage of jobs, but also job-ready talent.
A complete picture of the labor market also includes geographic distribution. Between 2023 and 2025, nearly 90% of jobs remained concentrated in Yerevan, making diversification across the regions a priority. Among the most active cities are Abovyan (Kotayk), Gyumri (Shirak), and Masis (Ararat). The growing integration of AI as a potential balancing force is capable of reshaping the geography of work in Armenia.
Learning to Adapt
An interview with staff.am Co-Founder and CEO Luiza Avetisyan revealed concerns about the nature of work itself. While it is often assumed that technological advancement and artificial intelligence lead to widespread job loss, Avetisyan says that, in reality, jobs will not simply disappear, but will be reshaped. Certain traditional professions may decline, but new sectors will give rise to entirely new roles.
The key changes are speed and expectations. “For example, the role of the accountant or a recruiter is not disappearing, but their work is increasingly being automated through AI, and tasks that once took days can now be completed in minutes,” explains Avetisyan. “This doesn’t mean that we won’t need accountants, but the expectations will be different. Similarly, in video production, AI has not replaced videographers, but those who adopt new technologies and develop their skills become more competitive.”
Another result is the “flattening” of the market, allowing more individual initiatives to take center stage. Small teams, or single owner enterprises can now produce a level of quality once only possible for large organizations. The gap has narrowed significantly. Avetisyan believes that the time is ripe for creative industries, which depend more on talent than financial resources.
Shifts and Adjustments
The workplace revolution will also shift the burden to universities and the education system. According to Avetisyan, some bachelor’s programs may need to be shortened to three or even 2.5 years for faster entry into the job market. While this approach cannot apply to all disciplines, and in particular to sciences, it could be adapted in technological and adjacent fields, where the previous “luxury” of long learning cycles no longer exists. Additionally, university programs may need to prepare graduates for multiple career switches, reflecting the dynamic nature of careers in the age of AI.
From a broader perspective, Gevorg Poghosyan, the CEO of reArmenia, an online non-profit collaboration platform that connects Armenians worldwide to solve structural problems through knowledge, network, and fundraising, emphasized the potentials: “We say that we are a museum under the open air; I would add that we are a laboratory under the open air,” he noted during Public Sector Innovation Forum, highlighting Armenia’s capacity to serve as a space for experimentation and model-building as AI expands across different sectors. “One can already see new scientific research directions, such as AI and neuroscience, AI and smart systems, and AI and robotics, creating opportunities for a new workforce, new talent, and new positions.”
He also spoke about redefining basic knowledge in the workforce. “A century ago, to be literate meant to read and write, and nations launched campaigns to eradicate illiteracy. Today, to be literate in the modern world increasingly means to understand and use AI at a basic level.” He went on to stress that this will require coordinated effort across public and private sectors.
On national level, the Armenian government is planning to introduce AI education in the majority of public schools in Armenia by the end of 2026, making it accessible to around 80% of schoolchildren. This effort is also expected to complement the coming of one of the largest data centers in the Caucasus region, which is likely to generate many employment opportunities of its own.
One can already see new scientific research directions, such as AI and neuroscience, AI and smart systems, and AI and robotics, creating opportunities for a new workforce, new talent, and new positions.
Creativity and Authenticity
Generative AI lowers barriers to entry and enables individuals to produce and distribute content regardless of financial resources. Yet, it also raises questions of authorship, authenticity, and the potential homogenization of cultural expression. These concerns are especially relevant in Armenia, where the creative industry is largely based on solo entrepreneurship.
Strategic Solutions
The growing integration of AI across sectors calls for new global and local corporate strategies. For automation, the primary concerns are data protection and cybersecurity. As highlighted in Harvard research on AI ethics and business, companies will be evaluated not simply by how extensively they adopt AI, but by how responsibly they use it—particularly in safeguarding customer data and ensuring trust. In this sense, data protection is becoming a defining factor of corporate reputations.
While the foundations of a changing workforce are already visible in Armenia, what lies ahead depends on closing structural gaps, investing in human capital, and defining clear strategic direction.
