AI edge on EMI—India’s skilling loans soar for a career push

Artificial intelligence (AI) has become a career differentiator in India, and increasingly, a financed one. As demand for AI credentials rises, so does borrowing to pay for them. Graduates and young executives are queuing up at the counters of personal and educational loans for a course in AI. And, these go well beyond the technical, science education backgrounds.

Non-banking financial companies (NBFCs), upskilling platforms and recruiters note that one could be from any educational background but an AI stamp on the resume will ensure higher success at bagging a job.

NBFCs have noted the demand for loans where the money is spent on an AI-related course. They have tie-ups with skill learning platforms and are, therefore, aware that graduates and young executives are taking loans of anywhere between ₹50,000 and ₹2 lakh for courses on AI.

Recruiters have noticed the rising demand for candidates with some proficiency in AI.

“Clients have asked us if we can test if the candidates have a basic understanding of AI and are comfortable with vibe coding, and can use a NotebookLM for research, business analyst roles. None of them are tech based profiles,” said Anshuman Das, CEO and co-founder of recruitment firm Careernet.

VIBE coding uses speech for prompts; NotebookLM is a Google tool used to analyze documents.

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