IBM says it will triple entry-level hiring in 2026, even as AI reshapes jobs

IBM

• IBM to triple entry-level hiring in the US by 2026
• AI is reshaping junior roles, not replacing early-career workers
• New hires will focus more on problem-solving and customer work

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IBM is planning to significantly increase hiring for fresh graduates in the US next year, even as many companies worry that artificial intelligence could reduce opportunities for early-career workers, a report by Bloomberg reveals.

The company said it will triple its entry-level hiring in 2026, although it did not reveal exact numbers. According to IBM, the hiring expansion will happen across multiple departments rather than being limited to just one area.

Speaking at a conference in New York, IBM’s Chief Human Resources Officer Nickle LaMoreaux said the company has reworked job descriptions for junior roles, especially for software developers, to reflect how AI is changing day-to-day work. Her argument is simple: instead of replacing these workers, AI is reshaping what they do.

LaMoreaux said many tasks that entry-level employees handled a few years ago can now be done by AI tools. That has forced the company to rethink what value new hires bring to the table. Instead of spending most of their time doing routine coding, junior developers at IBM are now expected to focus more on customer-facing work and problem-solving — areas where human judgment still matters.

The shift is visible beyond engineering too. In HR, entry-level employees are no longer just answering repetitive questions. Instead, they step in when AI chatbots don’t deliver accurate responses, correcting outputs and working directly with managers when needed. In short, humans are becoming supervisors of AI rather than simply task executors.

IBM’s move comes at a time when AI’s impact on jobs is creating anxiety among students and recent graduates. Some tech leaders have warned that automation could wipe out a large share of entry-level office jobs by the end of this decade, raising concerns that the first step into the workforce could become harder to access.

However, IBM believes cutting entry-level hiring now could backfire later. LaMoreaux said companies that stop hiring juniors may face a shortage of experienced mid-level managers in a few years. That could force businesses to recruit externally, which is often more expensive and slower than promoting people who grew within the company.