Applied AI path

Applied AI

Calibrated against BLS occupational projections, Lightcast labor market data 2024, NIST AI RMF (AI 100-1)

Build, ship, and operate AI systems in production. The other flagship survivor career.

Pick the persona that matches your starting point. Each is a published curriculum + the comp delta it unlocks + the courses that get you there. Not sure which path is yours? The 2-minute Risk Score routes you to the right persona.

Applied AI personas

Engineer → AI engineer

Ship production AI systems.

The AI engineering track for working software engineers. RAG, agents, evaluation, observability, cost discipline.

$130K → $215K-$330K · open →

PM → AI PM

Operate AI products end-to-end.

The 15-module AI PM track for working product managers shipping non-deterministic systems.

$155K → $215K-$285K · open →

Sales rep → AI sales engineer

Sell AI to enterprise buyers.

The AI sales mastery track for working AEs and SEs entering the AI-vendor market.

$135K OTE → $290K-$485K OTE · open →

Where Applied AI meets Cybersecurity

The convergence personas

The premium-priced personas in 2026 sit at the intersection of these two paths. They share canonical pages — see the same content from either side.

Convergence

Defend production AI systems.

The highest-paying convergence persona. Prompt injection, agent abuse, supply chain, model integrity, AI red teaming.

$150K → $310K-$520K · open →

Convergence

Become the AI-augmented SOC analyst.

The fastest convergence track for working SOC analysts. AI-assisted triage, detection authoring, threat intel, automation.

$87K → $135K-$180K · open →

Convergence

Lead AI governance and risk.

The convergence persona for compliance, privacy, and risk practitioners owning the AI program.

$120K → $215K-$310K · open →

Last verified: May 2026?Report an inaccuracy