Latest
AI
Amazon
Apps
Biotech & Health
Climate
Cloud Computing
Commerce
Crypto
Enterprise
EVs
Fintech
Fundraising
Gadgets
Gaming
Google
Government & Policy
Hardware
Instagram
Layoffs
Media & Entertainment
Meta
Microsoft
Privacy
Robotics
Security
Social
Space
Startups
TikTok
Transportation
Venture
Staff
Events
Startup Battlefield
StrictlyVC
Newsletters
Podcasts
Videos
Partner Content
TechCrunch Brand Studio
Crunchboard
Contact Us
If and when AI will start replacing human labor has been the subject of numerous debates.
While it’s still hard to say with certainty if AI is beginning to take over roles previously done by humans, a recent survey from the World Economic Forum found that 40% of employers intend to cut staff where AI can automate tasks.
Researchers at SignalFire, a data-driven VC firm that tracks job movements of over 600 million employees and 80 million companies on LinkedIn, believe they may be seeing first signs of AI’s impact on hiring.
When analyzing hiring trends, SignalFire noticed that tech companies recruited fewer recent college graduates in 2024 than they did in 2023. Meanwhile, tech companies, especially the top 15 Big Tech businesses, ramped up their hiring of experienced professionals.
Specifically, SignalFire found that Big Tech companies reduced the hiring of new graduates by 25% in 2024 compared to 2023. Meanwhile, graduate recruitment at startups decreased by 11% compared to the prior year. Although SignalFire wouldn’t reveal exactly how many fewer grads were hired according to their data, a spokesperson told us it was thousands.
While adoption of new AI tools might not fully explain the dip in recent grad hiring, Asher Bantock, SignalFire’s head of research, says there’s “convincing evidence” that AI is a significant contributing factor.
Entry-level jobs are susceptible to automation because they often involve routine, low-risk tasks that generative AI handles well.
AI’s new coding, debugging, financial research, and software installation abilities could mean companies need fewer people to do that type of work. AI’s ability to handle certain entry-level tasks means some jobs for new graduates could soon be obsolete.
Gabe Stengel, the founder of AI financial analyst startup Rogo, started his career at Lazard investment bank where he helped large pharma companies buy biotech startups. Rogo’s tool “can do almost all the work I did in the analysis of those companies,” Stengel said onstage at Newcomer’s financial technology summit last week. “We can put together the materials, diligence the company, look through their financials.”
While most large investment banks haven’t explicitly reduced analyst hiring due to AI yet, executives at firms like Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley previously considered cutting junior staff hires by up to two-thirds and lowering the pay of those they hire because the work with AI is not as demanding as before, the New York Times reported last year.
Although AI’s threat to low-skilled jobs is real, tech companies’ need for experienced professionals is still rising. According to SignalFire’s report, Big Tech companies increased hiring by 27% for professionals with two to five years of experience, while startups hired 14% more individuals in that same seniority range.
A frustrating paradox emerges for recent graduates: They can’t get hired without experience, but they can’t get experience without being hired. While this dilemma is not new, Heather Doshay, SignalFire’s people and talent partner, says it is considerably exacerbated by AI.
Dashay’s advice to new grads: master AI tools. “AI won’t take your job if you’re the one who’s best at using it,” she said.
Topics
When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. This doesn’t affect our editorial independence.
Marina Temkin is a venture capital and startups reporter at TechCrunch. Prior to joining TechCrunch, she wrote about VC for PitchBook and Venture Capital Journal. Earlier in her career, Marina was a financial analyst and earned a CFA charterholder designation.
You can contact or verify outreach from Marina by emailing marina.temkin@techcrunch.com or via encrypted message at +1 347-683-3909 on Signal.
Get an inside look at what it takes to scale and succeed from leaders at Mach Industries, Founders Fund, and Shinkei Systems. Through candid fireside chats and high-impact networking, you’ll walk away with valuable insights and new connections.
Google will pay SpaceX $920M per month for compute
Mira Murati steps back into the spotlight, carefully
Microsoft launches Scout, an OpenClaw-inspired personal assistant
Hackers hijacked Instagram accounts by tricking Meta AI support chatbot into granting access
DuckDuckGo makes its ‘no-AI’ search engine easier to access as its traffic booms
Strava declares war on scrapers ahead of IPO
© 2026 TechCrunch Media LLC.
Leave a Reply