The demand for Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning development has grown considerably in the last few years, leaving companies in the US, UK, and other markets struggling to fill critical roles. The talent shortage slows adoption and raises hiring costs, making it harder for businesses to scale their AI initiatives.
One effective way to overcome this challenge is to hire AI developers in Ukraine. The country offers a large IT workforce, a growing base of AI/ML specialists, and internationally recognized expertise across industries. For organizations looking to accelerate AI projects without compromising on quality or cost efficiency, Ukraine has become one of the leading destinations in Central and Eastern Europe.
Why do companies struggle to hire AI specialists locally?
In 2025, global spending on AI solutions will reach $307B, projected to surpass $632B by 2028 [1]. This rapid scaling is matched by enterprise intent: 86% of global C-suite executives plan to increase their investments in generative AI during 2025, and 60% expect to scale GenAI across their organization within the year [2].
Despite this surge in adoption, a severe shortage of skilled talent remains. LinkedIn reports that AI-related job postings grew 30% faster than overall hiring since late 2024, and mentions of AI literacy in job ads rose more than sixfold in just one year [3]. At the same time, the PwC 2025 Global AI Jobs Barometer shows that AI-exposed industries are experiencing twice the wage growth of non-AI sectors and a 56% wage premium, underscoring the scarcity of expertise [4].
Adoption has already become mainstream: according to McKinsey’s 2025 State of AI survey, 78% of companies now use AI in at least one business function [5]. Financial institutions, healthcare providers, and manufacturers report the strongest productivity gains. The biggest challenge is in the US and UK, where local labor markets cannot meet the demand for engineers skilled in generative AI, computer vision, and domain-specific Machine Learning.
Due to this gap, many organizations are establishing AI hubs and R&D centers abroad to access qualified specialists. Central and Eastern Europe remain key outsourcing destinations. Ukraine alone counts about 5,200 AI/ML professionals as of 2024, according to DOU [6]. With large and competitive talent pools, Ukraine, Poland, and neighboring countries continue to meet demand from Western firms seeking highly skilled AI engineers.
The gap between AI talent demand and supply is stark. Thomson Reuters estimates that up to 50% of all AI positions needed worldwide could remain unfilled due to the lack of qualified experts [7]. This shortage means the number of companies looking to hire AI developers is far higher than the number of available specialists. As a result, many organizations are increasingly turning to outsourcing and offshore hubs to secure the expertise required for their AI initiatives.
Read more: How to build an AI development team
Why should you hire AI developers in Ukraine?
Strong educational background
Ukraine has a strong STEM-based educational background. Some universities in Ukraine offer Master’s programs in Computer Science with specialization in Data Science. The Master’s Program in Computer Science/Data Science enables aspiring specialists to acquire programming, data analytics, Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence, Big Data system architecture, and product development skills.
Comprehensive expertise of Ukrainian AI software developers
Ukrainian engineers have developed a broad and commercially relevant AI skill base. Machine Learning alone makes up more than a quarter of all projects. Ukrainian specialists in AI/ML areas are well-versed in building demand forecasting, fraud detection, predictive maintenance, and GenAI-based solutions.
Alongside Machine Learning and IoT technologies, which dominate most projects, Ukrainian teams also demonstrate solid expertise in computer vision, robotics, and data analysis—each making up about 9% of projects. These areas reflect capabilities in domains where global demand is expanding quickly.
- Computer vision is applied in quality inspection, security systems, and medical imaging.
- Robotics supports industrial automation and defense technologies.
- Advanced data analysis is used in healthcare research, financial modeling, and operational optimization.
For businesses, this combination of scale in ML and IoT with specialization in CV, robotics, and analytics means Ukraine can provide both large development teams for mainstream projects and highly skilled experts for domain-specific challenges.
AI projects in Ukraine span a wide range of industries, but the statistics show a few clear strengths. Nearly 40% of projects focus on software development, which confirms Ukraine’s role as a hub for developing full-scale products, enterprise applications, and custom platforms.
Another 15% of projects fall under IT services, which reflects strong skills in integration, system support, and long-term solution maintenance. Such services are essential for companies that need AI embedded into existing infrastructure rather than built from scratch.
Beyond the two leading competencies, fintech software development, chatbots, and entertainment AI solutions together account for over 20% of the technology distribution. This percentage indicates Ukrainian developers’ deep experience with customer-facing solutions and highly interactive products. Smaller shares in healthcare, transport, and education domains showcase that Ukrainian AI developers also work in regulated and complex industries where reliability and compliance matter.
The key point for companies planning to hire AI developers in Ukraine is that the country combines both breadth of skills and depth of specialization. You can scale mainstream projects in Machine Learning, IoT, or enterprise software while tapping into specialized talent for sectors like healthcare, fintech, or defense.
Discover the benefits of Machine Learning and its real-world applications
Wide choice of trusted Big Data and AI software development companies
Ukraine is now one of the largest hubs for AI software development companies in Central and Eastern Europe. According to Clutch, the country has 309 providers, putting it among the top two markets in the region, together with Poland. This means international clients can access a broad range of tech partners, from vendors with niche expertise to large enterprises capable of handling complex, long-term programs.
Companies looking to hire AI developers in Ukraine benefit from an ecosystem where vendors have proven experience across a wide range of industries, including finance, healthcare, logistics, and retail. Clients can expect technical delivery and domain expertise that help accelerate adoption and reduce project risk.
Several Ukrainian AI software development companies have established themselves as reliable long-term partners within this landscape. One of them is N-iX, a company that combines over 23 years of software engineering experience with deep expertise in AI, Machine Learning, and data analytics. N-iX has delivered dozens of AI-driven projects for global enterprises, supporting use cases such as demand forecasting, fraud detection, predictive maintenance, and many others.
Growing talent pool of IT specialists
Ukraine continues to demonstrate the scale and resilience of its IT workforce. As of February 24, 2025, the country had 262,093 active IT sole proprietors (FOP) registered under IT-related codes, according to the national registry. Taking into account professionals employed under other arrangements, the total IT workforce is estimated at around 307K specialists [8, 10].
Language proficiency supporting global delivery
Language proficiency is another reason why European businesses want to cooperate with Ukrainian vendors. Over 65% of data professionals in Ukraine report an Upper-Intermediate or Advanced level of English, which ensures smooth collaboration with international clients and distributed teams [8].
Programming skills aligned with global AI trends
The latest DOU survey shows that Python ranks among the top two programming languages in Ukraine (17%), alongside TypeScript [9]. Python’s strong position reflects its role as the dominant language for Machine Learning, Data Science, and AI prototyping. JavaScript, C#, and Java also hold significant market share, ensuring businesses can source developers capable of integrating AI components into web and enterprise systems.
Among AI/ML/DS professionals specifically, 77,7% report using Python as their primary language, far ahead of the percentage of specialists working with databases (14,2%), Scala (2,9%), and Java (1,6%) [9]. This fact confirms that Ukrainian AI engineers are firmly aligned with the global standard stack for Machine Learning and Data Science.
This mix of skills is essential for companies seeking to hire AI developers in Ukraine. The prevalence of Python ensures access to specialists working with modern ML frameworks such as TensorFlow and PyTorch. The widespread use of Java, C#, and JavaScript supports end-to-end solution delivery that combines AI models with other applications.
Examples of projects Ukrainian AI software developers worked on
Ukrainian AI software engineers have sufficient experience, as many AI-powered startups were born in Ukraine or created in collaboration with Ukrainian software engineers. Let’s review some of the cutting-edge solutions.
Grammarly is one of the best-known examples. With a valuation of $13B and over 40M daily users, the AI writing partner continues to expand its generative AI features. In 2025, the company raised $1B in financing to accelerate development of its productivity platform.
People.ai, an AI-powered revenue intelligence platform with an R&D presence in Kyiv, reached unicorn status with a $1.1B valuation. Its technology helps sales and marketing teams at companies like Zoom and Lyft capture and analyze customer interactions.
Preply, an online learning marketplace founded in Ukraine, leverages AI to personalize language education. The company was valued at $440.8M in 2023 and joined the unicorn club in 2024.
DataRobot is a Machine Learning platform that helps enterprises quickly build predictive models. It raised $54 million in a Series C funding round led by New Enterprise Associates (NEA). The company has an R&D office in Kyiv, with up to 200 employees working there, according to DOU, an authoritative local IT industry resource.
N-iX also delivers AI solutions for its global clients. For instance, the company developed an ML-powered churn prediction system for a subscription-based ecommerce platform. Using AWS SageMaker and serverless architecture, the N-iX team built predictive models and automated retention campaigns, helping the client reduce churn and improve customer lifetime value through real-time AI insights.
The six stages of AI/ML projects
When hiring AI developers in Ukraine, aligning the team with your business objectives is crucial. Some organizations only need data collection and visualization, for instance, retailers tracking unsold goods across stores, or banks consolidating CRM data. Others require ready-to-use algorithms, such as recommendation systems for ecommerce. In more advanced cases, businesses invest in full-scale R&D projects, building custom models and architectures tailored to their domain.
At N-iX, we typically see six milestones in enterprise AI/ML projects, each requiring a specific role:
- First, a solution architect designs the overall architecture to ensure scalability, reliability, and integration with existing systems.
- Next, Big Data architects and engineers build a robust data ecosystem (e.g., Hadoop, Spark) to collect, process, and store large volumes of data from siloed sources.
- ETL specialists (Big Data architect or ML engineer) run extract, transform, and load procedures to prepare datasets for modeling.
- Data scientists refine data, select algorithms, and design initial models to solve business-specific problems.
- After that, Machine Learning engineers operationalize the models, fine-tune them, and set up retraining pipelines as new data arrives.
- Finally, Business Intelligence experts and front-end developers turn insights into accessible dashboards and reports for end users.
Top 5 AI development vendors in Ukraine
To compile this list, we have analyzed the Clutch listing of Ukrainian Artificial Intelligence vendors and selected five companies with a solid portfolio of AI and ML solutions and development centers in Ukraine.
1. N-iX
N-iX is a global software development provider with offices in 25 global locations, including Ukraine. With over 23 years in the tech industry, we have delivered more than 60 successful Data Science and AI projects, supported by a team of over 200 data, AI, and ML experts.
Our AI capabilities cover the full cycle of solution development. We design and implement systems powered by supervised, unsupervised, and reinforcement learning, applying methods such as NLP, computer vision, deep learning, and neural networks. Our team builds intelligent automation, predictive models, recommendation engines, chatbots, and generative AI solutions, and sets up MLOps pipelines to bring models into production securely and at scale.
N-iX delivers these capabilities across multiple industries, including finance, healthcare, retail, telecom, manufacturing, energy, logistics, and automotive. This expertise allows us to adapt AI solutions to the requirements of each sector, from fraud detection and personalized customer engagement to predictive maintenance and demand forecasting.
2. Abto Software
This vendor has expertise in AI-based advanced analytics and chatbot development. They also provide computer vision services and deliver intelligent video analytics solutions.
3. Quantum
This vendor works with small and mid-size companies, as well as quickly growing startups, all over the world. Their clients represent various domains, including agritech, healthcare, security, smart city, entertainment, and sports.
4. Softengi
This company’s expertise in AI ranges from Big Data collection, data mining, predictive analytics, to Machine Learning and chatbots. They help their clients prepare for and undertake digital transformation successfully.
5. Infopulse
Besides their software development competence, they have a solid portfolio of ML-based projects. They’ve worked with companies in automotive, telecommunications, banking and finance, insurance, healthcare, manufacturing, and other industries.
Why should you choose N-iX to hire AI developers in Ukraine?
N-iX is a trusted partner for companies that want to scale their AI initiatives with experienced engineering teams in Ukraine and beyond. We combine deep technical expertise, strong delivery culture, and long-term partnerships with enterprises worldwide.
- We bring together over 2,400 specialists, including 200 data, AI, and ML experts, ready to support projects of any scale. Our capabilities extend to custom software development, cloud, DevOps, UX/UI, BI, and QA.
- With 23 years of experience and more than 60 delivered AI and data projects, we have a proven track record of applying ML, NLP, computer vision, and generative AI to solve complex business challenges.
- N-iX is recognized in IAOP’s Global Outsourcing 100, listed among the top vendors on Clutch and GoodFirms, and holds strategic partnerships with AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, and SAP.
- We offer flexible engagement models and adapt to each client’s needs, ensuring transparency, scalability, and alignment with business goals.
- Our portfolio includes long-term collaborations with Fortune 500 companies, global enterprises, and midsize businesses across North America, Europe, and the UK.
Summary
Global demand for AI talent continues to grow faster than the supply of qualified specialists, particularly in the US and UK. Many organizations turn to Central and Eastern Europe and hire AI developers in Ukraine as one of the region’s leading destinations.
The country combines a large IT workforce, a growing pool of AI/ML specialists, strong English proficiency, and a time zone that aligns with Europe and North America. Ukrainian developers bring both scale in core technologies like ML, and specialization in computer vision, robotics, and advanced analytics.
Clients also benefit from a mature vendor ecosystem of 309 AI software development companies. N-iX is one of the leading companies that combines deep AI expertise with enterprise delivery discipline, consistently helping global organizations move from the idea to production.
References
- IDC. Worldwide GenAI 2025 Predictions
- Accenture. Pulse of Change
- LinkedIn. Work Change Report
- PwC. The Fearless Future: 2025 Global AI Jobs Barometer
- McKinsey & Company. The state of AI
- DOU. Як Україна планує розвивати ШІ до 2030 року. Головні тези звіту Мінцифри
- Thomson Reuters. Needed AI skills facing unknown regulations and advancements
- DOU. Скільки айтівців в Україні: рекордна кількість закритих ІТ-ФОПів за рік
- DOU. Рейтинг мов програмування 2025. TypeScript і Python — найпопулярніші, частки C# та Java зменшуються
- AI HOUSE. The AI Ecosystem of Ukraine: Talent, Companies, and Education
Have a question?
Speak to an expert
