15 Six-figure jobs that didn’t exist ten years ago

Ten years ago (2016), TikTok didn’t exist, AI was the stuff of science fiction, and Slack had barely entered the public consciousness. Crypto? Bitcoin rose 54% to hit, can you believe it, $960 a token.  

A lot has changed in ten years, hasn’t it? And for every major tech breakthrough, there’s been a rise in six-figure jobs that take advantage of that technology. 

When COVID hit in 2020, necessity demanded that workers still communicate. Zoom exploded in popularity, going from 10 million daily users to 300 million. All that demand led to a sharp increase in employees at Zoom – jumping from 1700 in 2019 to 7500 today – and also led to the creation of new jobs such as telemedicine physicians that we now take for granted. 

Here’s the bottom line: the rapid clip of tech evolution has led to a whole lot of six-figure jobs that didn’t exist 10 years ago. 

These jobs exist across many industries and verticals, hitting marketing, IT, tech, medicine, HR, and even cybersecurity. There’s not one right path nor is there one right field. 

To help you expand your job search and land that $100k+ salary, we’ve compiled the most promising 15 six-figure careers that didn’t exist ten years ago.

Let’s dive in.

Six figure jobs that didn’t even exist ten years ago 

Data Scientist 

This is cheating a little bit, because the field of “Data science” has been around since the 1960s…just under the name “data analysis.” 

However, the data scientist as a true profession didn’t explode until the 2010s. In fact, in 2012, Harvard Business Review declared the data scientist “the sexiest job of the 21st century.”

AI, particularly agentic AI, runs on data. As companies employ more AI to stay competitive, they require more training data, which, in turn, fuels the need for data scientists to make sense of this data. This demand means that data scientist job growth will remain strong.

What is a data scientist? 

A data scientist is a professional who uses statistical, analytical, and programming tools to extract meaningful insights from data. 

Data scientist median salary 

$112,000 

Degree required? 

Bachelor’s 

Machine Learning Specialist

Also called machine learning engineer or deep learning engineer, machine learning specialists work on the subset of AI called machine learning – which refers to the ability of an algorithm to learn from data and perform tasks without being explicitly programmed to do so. 

From predictive text to product recommendations to business-critical predictive analytics, Machine Learning is increasingly underpinning advancement across entire industries. 

What is a machine learning specialist / machine learning engineer?

A machine learning engineer creates and deploys algorithms that are trained on data to make predictions and perform tasks. 

Machine Learning Specialist median salary 

$129,000 – $200,000

Degree required? 

Bachelor’s 

SEO Specialists 

Pre-Google, SEO wasn’t even a term. In the early 90s, webmasters – one-stop-shop employees who built and maintained a company’s website – started to optimize their sites to become discoverable via search engines. 

After Google became the dominant search tool, webmasters responded by optimizing their sites for Google specifically – and as Google changed its rankings, so did their tactics. 

By the mid 2010s, SEO had moved from being a subsection of a webmaster’s responsibilities to a fully fledged position – straddling both marketing and site administration. 

What is an SEO specialist? 

An SEO specialist is a website and marketing professional that optimizes pages to improve findability on search engines like Google. 

SEO specialist median salary: 

$86,000, but experienced professionals can earn over $115,000 

Degree required? 

No, but a Bachelor’s is beneficial 

AEO specialist 

Here’s a scary figure: AI summaries have slashed search result clicks by 45%. 

AIO or AI overviews have overhauled how users navigate search queries through Google. Instead of typing in a query, then clicking the top link, users now simply read the AI-generated overviews that Google provides (even though it is wrong 10% of the time). 

Companies aren’t taking this sitting down; they’re adapting to the collapse in web traffic by investing in AEO: Answer Engine Optimization. 

AEO and GEO is the logical evolution of SEO. Now, companies optimize their content to make sure that AI overviews or LLMs like ChatGPT and Claude cite their original content in their generated responses. That’s the job of the AEO specialist – making sure their company’s content makes it into the AI overview. 

What is an AEO specialist? 

An AEO specialist is a website and marketing professional that optimizes pages to ensure their inclusion in AI-generated answers.

AEO specialist Median salary: 

$91,000 – $180,000

Degree required? 

No, but a Bachelor’s is beneficial  

Cloud Architect

It’s hard to remember, but there was a time when companies had on-site servers for their websites. Amazon Web Services (AWS) only launched in 2006, and didn’t become profitable until 2016. Today, the vast majority of companies use cloud servers to host their websites, and IT specialists increasingly need to architect and maintain websites that run on these cloud systems. 

What is a cloud architect? 

A Cloud architect is an IT professional who designs, implements, and maintains a company’s cloud-based infrastructure on platforms such as AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud. 

Cloud architect median salary: 

$132,000 – $200,000

Degree required? 

Bachelor’s degree and/or cloud certification

Climate change analyst 

In 2026, the climate haclimate change has become a measurable risk for businesses and the public alike. Hotter average temperatures mean that extreme weather events such as heat waves and flooding happen with sharply increasing regularity.

Private enterprises and public agencies alike are responding to these new climate extremes by hiring professionals who can model risk, mitigate economic damages, and provide solutions to protect people from extreme weather events. 

What is a climate change analyst? 

A climate change analyst studies how shifting climate impacts businesses, communities, and ecosystems – providing solutions to prevent or mitigate the negative impact of extreme weather. 

Climate change analyst median salary
$112,000

Degree required? 

Bachelor’s 

Telemedicine physician 

Ten years ago, if you wanted to see the doctor, you had to go to the doctor’s office – something not always easy to do when a surprise illness hit. 

Today, telemedicine providers can diagnose, treat illnesses, and prescribe medicine for a variety of illnesses from mild infections to mental illnesses – reducing the need for patients to have to go in-person to a clinic or doctor’s office. If an issue is too severe, telemedicine physicians can quickly refer patients to urgent care or a hospital. 

What is a telemedicine physician? 

A telemedicine physician is a licensed practitioner who treats patients and prescribes medicine via videoconference as opposed to in person. 

Telemedicine median salary: 

$240,000

Degree required? 

MD for physicians, MSN for nurse practitioner

Social Media Manager 

Facebook launched publicly in 2006, while Instagram launched in 2010, and TikTok even later in 2016. 

In the early days of social media, a brand’s social media presence was typically handled by an intern or as a component of a marketer’s job description. That has changed. Today, social media managers curate a brand’s presence across a series of platforms from Instagram to LinkedIn to TikTok to Reddit. 

As social media has grown to become one of the most important channels for reaching customers, the role of the social media manager has grown more impactful. Savvy social media managers build brand loyalty across an ecosystem of apps – driving engagement and sales in ways that were unthinkable just ten years ago. 

What is a social media manager? 

A social media manager is a marketing professional who implements and executes a brand’s marketing strategy across social media accounts – creating content, managing online responses, and adapting campaigns to increase conversions. 

Social media manager salary: 

$74,000, but can rise to over $200,000 with experience.    

Degree required? 

No 

Influencer Manager 

With the rise of social media came the rise of the influencer. Influencers are independent content creators who provide reviews, videos, and posts about products or brands in exchange for compensation. 

As an example: an instagram travel influencer is given a free stay at a hotel in exchange for a thorough video review of the resort. 

Influencers are important because of the relationship and trust they have built up with their followers. Brands looking to tap into these relationships have expanded their marketing department to include influencer managers – professionals who manage the slate of freelance influencers for their brand. 

What is an influencer manager? 

An influencer manager is a marketing professional who works with the brand’s freelance influencers to set influencer marketing strategy, manages the creation of influencer content, and builds relationships with their pool of influencers. 

Influencer manager salary: 

$135,000 

Degree required? 

No

Drone Operator 

Drone operators are not confined to flying UAVs for the military; today, drone operators work as surveyors for energy companies, provide aerial shots for films, and oversee autonomous deliveries. While pilots must hold a remote pilot certificate from the FAA, they do not require a college degree – meaning that the barrier to entry is relatively low compared to many other six-figure positions. 

What is a drone operator? 

A drone operator, also known as a drone pilot, pilots unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to conduct surveys, collect data and video/images, and complete deliveries. 

Drone operator salary: 

$71,000 – $100,000

Degree required? 

Remote Pilot Certificate

AI Ethicist 

The meteoric rise of generative and agentic AI has led to amazing breakthroughs: hyperpersonalization at scale, improved risk management, automated customer service, and self-teaching programs that take independent actions. 

However, with such agency comes a high risk for improper action. AI agents can make disastrous mistakes, such as deleting 2.5 years worth of records in an instant. Additionally, since AI is trained on reams of data (in some cases, sensitive customer data), it is paramount that companies protect against improper data leakage or AI access. 

These dangers have resulted in the rise of the AI Ethicist: the professional who sets policy for ethical use of AI.

What is an AI ethicist? 

An AI ethicist is a professional who sets policy to ensure the ethical development and implementation of AI programs. 

AI ethicist salary

$70,000 – $170,000

Degree required? 

Bachelor’s

AI Engineer

Software engineers aren’t new. They’ve been around since the 1960s. These professionals use coding languages to create programs that run everything from banking apps to the web browser you’re using to read this article. 

The advent of AI, particularly GenAI and agentic AI, created a new development in the software engineering field: engineers who could not only build programs, but who could harness AI itself to engineer ever more effective products. 

What is an AI engineer? 

An AI engineer develops and trains AI programs such as LLMs and ML to solve complex problems.

AI engineer median salary: 

$142,000

Degree required? 

Yes

Chief Listening Officer 

Today, company reputations can be shattered far faster than they can be built. Thanks to the rapid-fire pace of social media, PR problems can quickly grow from a small kitchen fire to a raging inferno. 

Businesses are responding by becoming far more responsive – working in real-time to monitor internal and external company and brand sentiment to catch trends (positive and negative), and make strategic pivots to address concerns. 

This is the domain of the Chief Listening Officer: a hybrid PR, communications, and revenue leadership role that guides the C-Suite in making opinion-informed decisions to improve a company’s image. 

What is a Chief Listening Officer 

A Chief Listening Officer is a C-suite professional who monitors internal and external communications to gauge popular sentiment about the business. The CLO then provides recommendations on how to increase popular sentiment for the brand.

Chief Listening Officer median salary: 

$151,000

Degree Required? 

Bachelor’s

Data Protection Officer 

In 2018, the EU implemented a comprehensive data protection plan known as GDPR. While GDPR technically only protects the data of EU citizens, the interconnected nature of the web meant that any company doing business within the EU had to comply with GDPR regulations – and it was often easiest to extend GDPR protections to every user. 

GDPR exists to protect user data from improper usage; it’s the reason why we are asked to accept or reject cookies on every website we access. 

One of the tenets of GDPR is that companies must have a Data Protection Officer – an internal or external professional who ensures that users’ data is being used and protected according to the law. 

What is a Data Protection Officer? 

A data protection officer (DPO) is an internal or external individual who insures that the law protecting users’ data are being followed within an organization. 

Data Protection Officer median salary: 

$118,000

Degree Required? 

Bachelor’s at minimum

Chief AI Officer 

The expansion of AI is a watershed moment; companies are scrambling to adopt AI and harness its potential. However, AI benefits have been sporadic; 95% of AI pilots fail, while AI workslop costs companies $186 per employee per month.

AI, when implemented correctly, can deliver significant ROI. But, it requires companies to develop and execute on a well-reasoned AI strategy. Centralizing all AI development under a single C-suite leader moves AI evolution away from haphazard growth to a consistent, trackable model for development. 

What is a Chief AI Officer 

A Chief AI Officer is a C-level leader who oversees the entire strategy, development, governance, and implementation of all AI technologies at a company. This individual bridges the technical and business sides of an administration – overseeing the adoption of AI by all employees, not simply those in tech-heavy roles.

Chief AI Officer median salary: 

$200,000 – $500,000

Degree required? 

Bachelor’s at minimum

Technology drives new job roles

Looking at these jobs, one thing becomes clear: AI is behind a strong plurality of new jobs demanding six-figure salaries. Even as hiring has slowed from its post-pandemic highs, AI-driven roles have provided an outsized source of job growth, creating 1.3 million new job openings. 

This technology hasn’t just led to new roles being created; it has also boosted the growth of already existing jobs that are AI exposed. In fact, 77% of companies reported AI-driven job gains, as opposed to 46% experiencing losses. Among those experiencing both, 69% say gains outpaced losses. Additionally, software engineer headcount has grown more rapidly at AI-focused businesses compared to baseline. These roles are growing, and businesses are willing to pay a premium; PWC reported that workers with AI skills command a 56% wage premium compared to non-AI powered workers in similar fields. 

Power up your resume 

AI-powered jobs are driving exciting job growth, but they don’t represent all new six-figure jobs. Positions like drone operators and influencer managers and even chief listening officers present new opportunities that rely on emerging technologies to provide real value to companies and users. 

Not all of these jobs require advanced degrees, but all of them necessitate proficiency in new skills such as AEO or prompt engineering. 

Does your resume accurately reflect you? 

Make sure that your resume is recruiter-friendly and up-to-date on the latest skills you need to land that ground breaking six-figure job. 

Get your free professional resume review today.

Methodology

We sourced the median salaries from a slate of different sources, primarily relying on the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Glassdoor, and our own proprietary data. To identify the positions themselves, we relied on historical data via Wikipedia,industry publications, and our own proprietary data. Each salary is directly cited for transparency. Our selection had two primary criteria: does this job have a median salary of $100,000? If not, does it have a pay band that encompasses $100,000? Second: did this job exist 10 years ago in a comparable way? If yes, has it evolved significantly in terms of technology, seniority, or urgency? 

H2: 

Ladders is the leader in $100K+ careers, helping over 10 million members connect with high-paying opportunities. We provide advanced tools to help professionals manage their job search, find the right matches, and move forward in their careers.

We work with 22,000+ verified recruiters and hiring managers who are focused on sourcing high-level talent across the U.S. and Canada. Our audience represents the top 25% of the workforce, and our platform is built to meet the needs of ambitious professionals.

Ladders is dedicated to bringing you in-depth advice across industries and covers all aspects of our quickly evolving workplace. Everything the modern professional needs to know is available at a click and new articles appear daily.

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Sources

1. Macrotrends: Zoom employee count
   https://www.macrotrends.net/stocks/charts/ZM/zoom-communications/number-of-employees
2. Harvard Business Review: “The Sexiest Job of the 21st Century” (Data Scientist) https://hbr.org/2012/10/data-scientist-the-sexiest-job-of-the-21st-century
3. Bureau of Labor Statistics: Data Scientist median salary ($112,000) https://www.bls.gov/ooh/math/data-scientists.htm
4. Glassdoor: Machine Learning Engineer salary ($129,000–$200,000)
   https://www.glassdoor.com/Salaries/machine-learning-engineer-salary-SRCH_KO0,25.htm
5. Glassdoor: SEO Specialist salary ($86,000)
   https://www.glassdoor.com/Salaries/seo-specialist-salary-SRCH_KO0,14.htm
6. Search Engine Journal: AI summaries slashed search clicks by 45%
   https://www.searchenginejournal.com/impact-of-ai-overviews-how-publishers-need-to-adapt/556843/
7. The New York Times: Google AI Overviews wrong 10% of the time
   https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/07/technology/google-ai-overviews-accuracy.html
8. SEO Sandwitch: GEO/AEO Specialist salary ($91,000)
   https://seosandwitch.com/geo-specialist-salary-usa/
9. Glassdoor: AEO salary ($180,000)
   https://www.glassdoor.com/Salaries/aeo-salary-SRCH_KO0%2C3.htm
10. Skillsoft: Cloud Architect salary ($132,000–$200,000)
    https://www.skillsoft.com/blog/what-does-a-cloud-architect-do
11. The Guardian: NASA data on rise in extreme weather events
    https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jun/17/nasa-data-reveals-dramatic-rise-in-intensity-of-weather-events
12. Glassdoor: Climate Change Analyst salary ($112,000)
    https://www.glassdoor.com/Salaries/new-york-climate-change-analyst-salary-SRCH_IL.0,8_IC1132348_KO9,31.htm
13. ZipRecruiter: Telemedicine Physician salary ($240,000) https://www.ziprecruiter.com/Salaries/Telemedicine-Physician-Salary
14. Built In: Social Media Manager salary ($74,000)
    https://builtin.com/salaries/us/social-media-manager
15. Glassdoor: Influencer Manager salary ($135,000)
    https://www.glassdoor.com/Salaries/influencer-manager-salary-SRCH_KO0,18.htm
16. Glassdoor: Drone Pilot salary ($71,000–$100,000)
    https://www.glassdoor.com/Salaries/drone-pilot-salary-SRCH_KO0,11.htm
17. Tom’s Hardware: Claude Code deletes 2.5 years of developer records https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/artificial-intelligence/claude-code-deletes-developers-production-setup-including-its-database-and-snapshots-2-5-years-of-records-were-nuked-in-an-instant
18. People in AI: AI Ethicist salary ($70,000–$170,000)
    https://www.peopleinai.com/blog/ai-ethics-jobs-guide
19. Glassdoor: AI Engineer salary ($142,000)
    https://www.glassdoor.com/Salaries/ai-engineer-salary-SRCH_KO0,11.htm
20. ZipRecruiter: Chief Listening Officer salary ($151,000)
    https://www.ziprecruiter.com/Salaries/Chief-Listening-Officer-Salary
21. Glassdoor: Data Protection Officer salary ($118,000)
    https://www.glassdoor.com/Salaries/data-protection-officer-salary-SRCH_KO0,23.htm
22. Fortune / Deloitte: 95% of AI pilots fail
    https://fortune.com/2026/04/20/hidden-roi-of-ai-what-leaders-should-actually-measure-deloitte-report/
23. Inc.: AI slop costs $186 per employee per month
    https://www.inc.com/bruce-crumley/the-hidden-cost-of-ai-slop-and-why-companies-that-push-through-it-come-out-ahead/91314407
24. Glassdoor: Chief AI Officer salary ($200,000–$500,000)
    https://www.glassdoor.com/Salaries/chief-ai-officer-salary-SRCH_KO0,16.htm
25. World Economic Forum: AI added 1.3 million new job openings https://www.weforum.org/stories/2026/01/ai-has-already-added-1-3-million-new-jobs-according-to-linkedin-data/
26. Snowflake: 77% of companies reported AI-driven job gains https://www.snowflake.com/en/news/press-releases/snowflake-research-reveals-ai-driven-job-creation-outpaces-job-loss-with-77-percent-reporting-workforce-gains/
27. BCG: Software engineer headcount growing faster at AI-focused firms
    https://www.bcg.com/publications/2026/ai-will-reshape-more-jobs-than-it-replaces
28. PwC: Workers with AI skills command a 56% wage premium https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/services/ai/ai-jobs-barometer.html