{
  "id": 2524569,
  "title": "Only 9% of India's finance aspirants feel ready to compete in AI-driven job market: Study",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/22/only-9-of-indias-finance-aspirants-feel-ready-to-compete-in-ai-driven",
  "topic": "ai",
  "section": "AI",
  "published": "2026-08-22T06:52:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Economic Times Tech",
    "slug": "economic-times-tech",
    "url": "https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/artificial-intelligence/only-9-of-indias-finance-aspirants-feel-ready-to-compete-in-ai-driven-job-market-study/articleshow/133419250.cms"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Only 9% of India's finance aspirants feel their current skills are sufficient to compete in an AI-driven job market, according to the Finance Talent Pulse 2026 study. This contrasts sharply with 67% of global graduates who believe their skills are adequate, the study found. Indian respondents were notably less optimistic about the impact of AI and automation, with 56% stating it was making job acquisition more difficult, compared to 59% globally.\n\nThe study revealed a significant lack of practical AI usage among Indian finance aspirants. Only 7% reported regularly using AI tools for real financial analysis or modeling, while 42% had never used AI in professional finance work. Furthermore, 26% of respondents claimed their exam preparation did not teach AI application in finance, indicating a gap in practical education. Concerns among Indians were primarily centered around a lack of hands-on experience, with 42% ranking this as their top worry, followed by 35% citing a need for better financial modeling skills and 18% expressing concern about AI tool proficiency.\n\nSanjay Saraf, Founder and Lead Educator at SSEI, emphasized that the 9% figure versus 67% globally highlights a broader educational mismatch. He stated that financial courses and certifications need to evolve faster to prepare students for an AI-driven job market. Saraf pointed out that while 89% of Indians valued professional certifications over postgraduate degrees, 100% believed continual skill enhancement was crucial. This underscores the urgent need for more practical AI training, applied exercises, and real-world financial problem-solving in finance education, the study concluded.",
  "summary": "The study found that the gap in AI readiness was the widest difference between the two groups. About 56% of Indian respondents said AI and automation were making it slightly or much harder to get their desired job. This was close to the 59% of global graduates who saw AI as a barrier of some kind.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}