U.S. media consultancy AI Digital has opened a new office in Belgrade after increasing its Serbian workforce by 78% in little more than a year, strengthening the city’s role in the company’s international operations. The company now employs 142 people in Serbia, compared with 80, and expects its local workforce to surpass 200 employees by the end of 2027.
Serbia currently represents about one-fifth of AI Digital’s global workforce, making the country one of its main operating locations. The Belgrade operation covers media performance optimisation, planning, finance and people functions, extending its responsibilities beyond lower-cost support activities.
Belgrade becomes third AI Digital hub
AI Digital was established in 2018 and provides technology-based media planning and advertising services to brands and agencies. Its operations combine digital advertising with artificial intelligence and automation across connected television, streaming audio, display advertising, digital out-of-home, search and social media. Belgrade is the company’s third office hub, alongside Miami and Cyprus. The Serbian team supports AI Digital’s international operations rather than serving only the domestic market, with functions integrated into the company’s wider business activities.
Expansion into higher-value services
AI Digital’s growth in Serbia comes as the country’s international services sector expands beyond software development and conventional outsourcing. International companies operating in Serbia increasingly use local teams for activities including analytics, product development, financial operations, marketing technology and cybersecurity.
The company’s Serbian operation includes planning, analytics-related activities, finance and operational functions, placing employees closer to core business processes. AI Digital plans to expand the workforce from 142 to more than 200 people, indicating continued growth of its Belgrade operation.
AI changes services employment
The company’s expansion also comes as artificial intelligence changes the structure of international services operations. Routine administrative, customer-support and basic analytical activities are increasingly exposed to automation, while demand is developing for employees capable of managing AI-enabled processes, analysing data, developing technology and supervising automated operations.
AI Digital describes itself as AI-native, meaning its Serbian workforce is expanding within a business that already incorporates automation into its operating model. The increase in employment demonstrates that AI adoption can coincide with workforce growth while changing the types of roles being performed.
New Belgrade office supports collaboration
The company’s new Belgrade facility includes 50 workstations and four conference rooms. The office provides physical collaboration space for employees operating within a remote-first model, allowing teams to meet and work together despite remote working arrangements. The expansion also places greater emphasis on retaining experienced employees as international companies compete for specialised talent in Serbia and other Central and Eastern European markets.
Serbia’s services export base
The expansion forms part of the wider development of Serbia’s ICT and professional services exports, which contribute to diversification beyond manufacturing, agriculture and foreign-owned industrial production. Digital services generally require less imported material input than traditional manufacturing, allowing a larger proportion of generated revenue to remain connected to domestic wages, taxes and spending.
The shift toward higher-value functions also changes the requirements for international companies operating in Serbia, as the importance of specialised skills increases alongside competition for experienced employees. With 142 employees already working in Serbia and the workforce projected to exceed 200 by the end of 2027, the Belgrade operation is becoming a larger component of AI Digital’s international business structure.
