Future Visitors: Russia Trains Its First 500 AI Instructors
Tomsk State University has graduated the first cohort of AI instructors. Their job will be to teach bankers, engineers, and educators not to fear neural networks, but to put them to work.
Participants in the course Vnedrenie i ispolzovanie neyrosetey v organizatsii (Deploying and Using Neural Networks in Organizations) came from across Russia, from Murmansk to Krasnodar. The trainees learned how to conduct full audits of workplace functions, craft effective prompts for AI systems, and apply artificial intelligence to routine tasks.
The National Project Kadry (Workforce) Changes the Rules
Imagine a company purchasing an expensive license for an advanced analytics platform only to discover that no one knows how to use it. The investment goes to waste. That gap is exactly what graduates of the new program are expected to close. The course is being delivered under Aktivnye mery sodeystviya zanyatosti (Active Employment Support Measures), a federal initiative within the Kadry national project. That distinction matters. The government is not simply teaching people how to use ChatGPT-like tools - it is training professionals who can introduce these technologies into real organizations. Bankers, teachers, engineers, IT professionals, and industrial specialists are now working from the same playbook.
According to research from the Higher School of Economics, nearly half of companies attempting to adopt AI struggle to find qualified specialists. Another 39% report that their own employees lack the skills needed to work effectively with intelligent software.
Who Is an AI Instructor?
Artyom Feshchenko, head of the Center for Technology and Research Support at TSU's Institute of Distance Education, openly acknowledges that AI instructor is not yet an officially recognized profession. In his view, however, it could emerge at any moment because neural networks are already breaking into fields ranging from law to manufacturing.
"Do not confuse this role with an AI trainer. Trainers teach artificial intelligence or neural networks using specially prepared datasets. Instructors, meanwhile, work inside company departments and are responsible for employee upskilling and professional development. They understand where a neural network can be integrated into a business process," Feshchenko explained.
The mission for graduates is to enter an organization and identify tasks that can be delegated to a smart machine. Companies are already spending heavily to make that possible. Russian customers invested about 60 billion rubles (approximately $760 million) in 2025 on servers optimized for AI workloads alone. To generate a return on those investments, organizations need guides who can connect technology to day-to-day work.
Humans and the Neural Revolution
When the profession of prompt engineer emerged in 2023, it sounded both new and mysterious. In practice, these were people who knew how to ask neural networks the right questions. At the time, Euronews was filled with headlines describing the role as one of the most important new trends in the labor market.
Russia moved quickly after recognizing that technology has limited value without people who know how to use it. In 2024, the country updated its National AI Development Strategy. Universities then joined the effort. Bauman Moscow State Technical University launched programs for creative professionals designed to help them embrace digital tools, while the Higher School of Economics expanded training in the use of large language models. There was one limitation, however. Those initiatives focused on teaching people how to use AI. Tomsk State University went a step further and began teaching people how to teach others.
Reports in 2025 suggested that Intel, IBM, and Google had temporarily slowed hiring for certain positions because business processes were increasingly being automated with neural networks. Yet the picture is more complicated. IBM also said it planned to triple hiring of entry-level employees in 2026, underscoring that the human role is not disappearing. Russia is following a similar path. Today, the Kadry national project offers 115,000 retraining places nationwide. Participants include military veterans, parents on parental leave, and people approaching retirement age - anyone looking to build skills for the near future.
Robots Will Not Leave People Without Jobs
The prospects for the new profession appear promising, but there is no reason for unrealistic expectations. AI instructors will need expertise that sits at the intersection of psychology and mathematics. Their toughest challenge may be overcoming employee fears. Research from the Higher School of Economics found that nearly three-quarters of Russians believe robots will eventually take jobs away from people. An instructor's role is to explain to an accountant or engineer that a robot is not taking away work - it is taking away routine tasks.
AI adoption professionals like these are likely to become standard hires in major banks, large manufacturing companies, and logistics giants. Vyacheslav Goyko, director of TSU's Institute for Big Data Analytics and Artificial Intelligence, believes that "job seekers who take current employer requirements into account will gain a competitive advantage. Now is the time to study neural networks and apply artificial intelligence. It is an investment in the future."
