Debate continues around the pace and scale at which artificial intelligence is changing employment in the tech sector.
A study from the World Economic Forum recently revealed that forty percent of companies globally are planning workforce reductions in areas where automation through AI is feasible.
SignalFire, a research firm known for analyzing job movements across hundreds of millions of professionals and companies, is now tracking early evidence that AI impact on entry level tech jobs is already shaking up hiring patterns in technology fields.
Compared to the previous year, leading technology firms recruited far fewer recent college graduates in 2024, even as they boosted hiring for more seasoned candidates.
SignalFire’s findings indicate that the fifteen largest firms in technology slashed new graduate recruitment by a quarter compared to last year, while startups cut their graduate hiring by about eleven percent.
Thousands fewer entry-level hires were made this year, though SignalFire did not provide an exact number.
According to Asher Bantock, who leads research at SignalFire, there is strong evidence that the adoption of new AI systems has played a significant role in this shift.
Routine work typical of entry-level roles is especially vulnerable, as modern generative AI can easily handle tasks that are repetitive and carry little risk.
AI Alters Entry Points Into Tech
Among the technologies at the center of this change are AI tools that can write code, debug software, conduct financial analysis, and install new software, all of which diminish the need for novice workers.
Gabe Stengel, who founded an AI financial analyst company, shared that his platform already completes nearly all of the diligence and reporting tasks he once managed at a major investment bank at the start of his career.
Stengel’s product can review company financials and prepare detailed reports, echoing the tasks typically performed by junior analysts at major banking firms.
Although most large financial institutions have not officially slashed junior analyst jobs due to AI, discussions about reducing such hiring have occurred at places like Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, where some leaders have contemplated shrinking analyst intake by up to two thirds or cutting entry pay since the work is less demanding with AI.
Tech employers, meanwhile, are increasingly focused on recruiting professionals with a proven track record.
SignalFire reports that AI and tech hiring trends for workers with two to five years of experience in large tech companies jumped by twenty seven percent, while similar roles at startups grew by fourteen percent.
For recent graduates, this creates a difficult scenario: professional experience is required to land most jobs, yet finding a company willing to provide that first opportunity is tougher than ever.
This long-standing problem has grown more acute, according to Heather Doshay, a talent specialist at SignalFire, who suggests new graduates should become proficient with AI if they hope to compete.
Doshay emphasizes that possessing expert-level familiarity with AI may be the surest way to secure a job in the new economy.
