Dive Brief:
- Technology occupation employment grew by 86,000 workers in August, according to analysis by technology training and certification company CompTIA, based on data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
- On the other hand, tech companies cut approximately 14,700 positions, including technical and nontechnical roles, per CompTIA. The company said this data could be the result of recent layoffs from U.S.-headquartered tech firms.
- In addition, there were more than 320,000 active job postings requiring artificial intelligence-related skills in August, representing a 4.5% month-over-month increase, according to CompTIA’s analysis of data from workforce analytics firm Lightcast.
Dive Insight:
The technology job market is changing rapidly as employers move past AI experimentation and toward AI implementation, CompTIA said. The company added that employers are now “increasingly incorporating AI into business operations, creating demand for workers who can apply AI tools, manage AI-enabled workflows, and support AI-driven initiatives.”
As a result, demand for technology talent remains strong despite what layoff numbers may suggest. CompTIA found “nearly 600,000 active technology occupation postings” in August, with 42% representing newly posted positions and the remaining percentage belonging to open roles still unfilled from previous months.
“Growth in tech support, infrastructure, project management and cybersecurity roles suggests employers remain focused on strengthening core technology functions while expanding emerging capabilities,” CompTIA said.
The analysis found that many of the available technology jobs came from outside traditional tech sectors, including manufacturing, administrative support services, and retail.
A July report from Indeed’s Hiring Lab found that the number of job postings with the words “artificial intelligence” in the title more than tripled in the U.S. since 2022, and “AI-touched job titles” increased across every tracked market. In five of the six countries the report examined, “more than half of all AI-touched job titles are now outside tech occupations,” while the U.S. led the nontech category at 63%. In addition, that report said that many roles with AI in the title were jobs that “have existed for decades” and been updated to include AI.
Another report, from tech career site Dice, found that job postings for roles with AI in the title jumped 173% year over year in Q1 2026, while software development jobs dipped 22% for the same period. Growth in tech hiring was uneven across sectors, the report noted, with tech listings in finance and banking up 47% year-over-year, compared to a 23% year-over-year increase in overall tech job postings.