In a recent statement, the CEO of the career networking platform Maimai, Lin Fan, predicted that by next year, technology companies may exclusively recruit professionals with AI expertise, as such capabilities become a baseline requirement for most roles. This forecast comes alongside the platform’s latest product enhancements designed to streamline the hiring process for AI-focused positions.
During an AI talent-themed seminar, Lin Fan, who also serves as Maimai’s founder, delivered a presentation titled “How Enterprises Can Win the AI Talent War in 2026.” He shared insights on recruitment and retention strategies while introducing three major upgrades to the company’s recruitment product, the Maimai Talent Bank. The first upgrade introduces an AI talent labeling system, enabling HR professionals and headhunters to instantly identify and categorize AI candidates through filter tags. These labels, visible in search results, talent lists, and candidate profiles, classify individuals into three groups: AI infrastructure talent, AI application development talent, and AI business efficiency talent.
The second upgrade expands Maimai’s mid-to-high-end talent network to connect with high-quality candidates globally, helping enterprises overcome traditional recruitment channel limitations and geographical barriers. The third enhancement involves Maimai’s AI-driven recruitment feature, which integrates job understanding, candidate matching, automated screening, and intent communication, achieving a matching accuracy rate of over 90%. HR personnel can now use natural language to specify job requirements, including implicit conditions such as “no frequent job hopping,” and the system will generate a list of suitable candidates. Additionally, a 7x24 AI chat assistant continuously engages with candidates to gauge their interest, saving HR professionals approximately four hours daily.
Lin Fan emphasized that for most companies, building an AI-ready workforce requires a dual approach: external hiring and internal development. External recruitment should focus on acquiring AI infrastructure and application development talent, which are difficult to cultivate internally in the short term. In contrast, AI business efficiency talent is better nurtured from within the organization, as these roles rely on deep contextual knowledge of company operations. For job seekers, Lin Fan suggested that the first two categories may be far removed from most professionals’ existing expertise and career paths. Instead, he advised that becoming a business efficiency expert who can skillfully apply AI in specific tasks and deliver tangible results is a more realistic career goal.
To help individuals self-assess their readiness, Lin Fan offered a straightforward benchmark: a true expert in using Coding Agents can define clear business objectives, run automated tasks for over an hour without intervention, and continuously validate and deliver results. Looking ahead, Maimai plans to leverage its high-density AI talent pool, Talent Bank, and AI recruitment tools to assist enterprises in more effectively identifying, connecting with, and retaining AI professionals.