AI and Job Postings: From Destruction to Creation?
Indeed Hiring Lab's AI and Job Postings: From Destruction to Creation? (July 2026; Indeed US job postings, labor data) found that software development postings rose almost 15% since late February 2025 while all postings fell 7%, with 71% of the past year's increase coming from senior roles.
Key findings
- 01US software development postings have grown almost 15% since late February 2025, while overall postings fell 7%.Indeed notes the timing coincides with agentic coding tools but says correlation does not imply causation.
- 02Software development postings remain about 27.5% below their pre-pandemic level.Overall postings are essentially the same as in February 2020.
- 0371% of the increase in software development postings between May 2025 and May 2026 came from senior roles.37% came from jobs that mention AI in the title; the two groups overlap.
- 04From May 2022 to May 2026, more AI-exposed occupations saw larger declines in postings; from May 2025 to May 2026 the relationship reversed.Over the past year the most AI-exposed occupations generally rebounded the most.
By the numbers
~15%rise in US software development postings since late Feb 2025
−7%change in all US postings over the same period
37%of the software posting increase from jobs with AI in the title
What it means for you Draft
For executives at $10–100M companies
Demand for software talent is returning, but mostly for senior people who can work with AI, which means those hires will be competitive and expensive. For a $10–100M company, that argues for developing AI skills in current staff rather than counting on hiring them. The shift toward senior roles matches academic findings that entry-level hiring is taking the hit.
For practitioners
If you are hiring developers, expect more competition for senior, AI-fluent candidates and fewer postings at the junior level. Job titles that mention AI are spreading to other white-collar roles, so review how your own postings describe AI work.
Limitations
Medium trust.Large, consistent postings dataset with clear caveats; short descriptive analysis from a company that sells hiring products, not AI.
Postings measure employer intent, not hires, and Indeed's share of postings varies by occupation. The analysis is descriptive and the author notes many factors besides AI affect postings. Indeed sells hiring products.
About the publisher: Research arm of Indeed, which sells job-posting and hiring products; data come from its own job postings.
Indeed Hiring Lab. "AI and Job Postings: From Destruction to Creation?." July 8, 2026. https://hiringlab.indeed.com/2026/07/08/ai-and-job-postings-from-destruction-to-creation/
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