Tech unemployment dipped to 1.8 percent in July, according to the latest CompTIA analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data. That’s the lowest rate since January 2023.
Within the tech industry, companies boosted their collective headcount by 5,432 employees last month. Across the broader economy, tech occupations increased by 65,000.
“Given the pace of tech hiring, it remains a fairly tight market for tech talent,” Tim Herbert, chief research officer, CompTIA, wrote in a statement accompanying the data. “It continues to be an environment where employers must supplement recruiting efforts with proactive talent development strategies.”
CompTIA’s note also called out strong job activity around up-and-coming technologies such as artificial intelligence (A.I.) and machine learning: “Positions in emerging technologies or requiring emerging tech skills accounted for about 23 percent of all tech job postings in July. Within the emerging tech category, 35 percent of job postings referenced artificial intelligence work and skills.”
At first glance, the number of A.I.-specific jobs seems limited; according to CompTIA, California was the top state for A.I. job postings, with 2,595 in July, followed by Texas (1,174) and Massachusetts (1,161). However, knowledge of A.I. tools and practices has rapidly found its way into multiple tech specializations, from software development to data science.
While some tech pros fear that automation and A.I. could eventually take their jobs, a recent Upwork survey of 1,400 U.S. business leaders found that 49 percent planned to hire more full-time staff and freelancers as a result of generative A.I. Meanwhile, developers are already using chatbots and other A.I. tools to write and debug code, plan projects, and deploy and monitor new releases.
As these tools become more sophisticated, there’s every chance they’ll speed up workflows and learning, boost efficiency, and improve coding accuracy. If you want to truly “future proof” your career, pay attention to how A.I. and machine learning are changing your profession.
