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Software engineering job openings have jumped roughly 30% in 2026, reaching more than 67,000 open roles at tech companies, according to TrueUp, a hiring analytics firm tracking listings across 9,000 companies. That figure represents the highest level in over three years, with listings nearly doubling since a trough in mid-2023. But the same quarter that produced this surge also saw tech companies announce 52,050 job cuts, the worst first-quarter total since 2023, according to outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas.
Two data sets. Same industry. One fault line running through the middle of it.
Key Takeaways
- TrueUp data shows 67,000+ software engineering openings, up 30% in 2026, the highest level in three years
- The same quarter saw 52,050 tech job cuts announced, with AI cited as the leading reason for layoffs across industries
- Entry-level workers face rising experience thresholds while top engineers at startups command $200,000+ base salaries
- BCG classifies software engineering as an 'amplified role' where AI boosts productivity without replacing engineers
AI-generated summary, reviewed by an editor. More on our AI guidelines.
Hiring rebounds, but the shape changes
TrueUp's dataset covers more than 260,000 open roles globally, focused on startups and public tech firms. Within that universe, demand for software engineers remains strong. AI-related positions are, in TrueUp founder Amit Taylor's word, "exploding."
Taylor doesn't mince words. The "AI is replacing engineers" line, he told Business Insider, "isn't grounded in job posting data, at least not so far."
None of this started with ChatGPT. The industry was already bleeding jobs it had added too fast during COVID by the time OpenAI's chatbot launched in late 2022. Rate hikes did the rest. Boards got spooked about margins, swung hard toward profitability, and the correction ran deep into 2023. Now the same firms are hiring again, and the irony bleeds through everything: AI, the technology that was supposed to replace engineers, turns out to be the reason they need more.
Same quarter, two realities
March alone brought 18,720 tech layoffs, up 24% from a year earlier. AI accounted for a quarter of all job-cut announcements across industries, according to Challenger. Oracle sent layoff notices to thousands of workers on April 1. Meta, Block, and IBM have all cited AI in recent workforce reductions.
And yet. The picture is muddier than the headlines suggest. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has accused companies of "AI washing" layoffs, blaming the technology for cuts that would have happened regardless. Marc Andreessen put it more bluntly: large companies were overstaffed by at least 25%, with many closer to 50% or 75%, he said. AI gives them "the silver bullet excuse."
Gartner senior analyst Kathy Ross told Business Insider that AI likely is not directly taking jobs yet. The layoffs, she said, "seem to be part of a broader strategy to reinvest funds in AI, hoping for success down the line." Capital spending, not capability, is doing the cutting.
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Entry-level workers feel the squeeze
If you graduated with a computer science degree this spring, the numbers look different than they do for a senior engineer. Recent college graduate unemployment has climbed to nearly 6%, its highest in over a decade outside the pandemic spike. Overall unemployment sits around 4%.
Indeed data shows the share of tech postings requiring five or more years of experience jumped from 37% to 42% between mid-2022 and mid-2025. Laura Ullrich, Indeed's director of economic research, calls this "experience creep." When the labor market tilts toward employers, they demand more. Simple as that.
Stanford economists found substantial declines in employment for early-career workers ages 22 to 25 in AI-exposed occupations, even as overall employment grew. The Atlantic's Rogé Karma calls that correlation a statistical mirage, arguing the struggles predate AI entirely and trace back to broader economic fear. Not everyone buys it, though that's almost beside the point. The squeeze is real regardless of the cause.
Where the money actually flows
Engineers who clear the bar are getting paid like it. At venture-backed startups, median base-salary offers have hit $200,000, a 25% jump from 2022, according to Levels.fyi. Fresh CS graduates at some seed-stage firms are seeing compensation packages north of $300,000. Four years ago, that kind of money barely existed below Series B. The broader class of 2026 is projected to start at $81,500, up 7% from last year, per the National Association of Colleges and Employers.
BCG's latest research classifies software engineering as an "amplified role", where AI boosts individual productivity without replacing the human at the center. GitHub reports developers using Copilot complete tasks 55% faster. That speed has not translated into fewer jobs. More ambitious projects demand more builders.
Two economies inside one job title
MIT research projects that AI will reach "minimally sufficient" performance on 80% to 95% of text-based work tasks by 2029. BCG estimates 50% to 55% of all US jobs will be reshaped in two to three years, with 10% to 15% potentially eliminated over five.
The software engineering market in April 2026 is not one story. Companies are bidding up senior engineers and AI specialists with anxious urgency. They are pulling back on entry-level roles and mid-career positions that overlap with what AI agents can handle. The 67,000 open listings and the 52,000 layoffs are both real numbers, both confirmed by credible firms. They just describe different workers inside a profession that no longer moves as one.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are software engineering jobs growing or shrinking in 2026?
Both, depending on seniority. TrueUp data shows 67,000+ open roles, up 30% this year and the highest in three years. But 52,050 tech job cuts were also announced in Q1 2026. Senior and AI-focused roles are in high demand while entry-level positions face increased competition.
Why are tech companies laying off workers while also hiring engineers?
Many layoffs reflect pre-existing overstaffing from pandemic-era hiring, not AI directly replacing workers. Companies are reallocating budgets toward AI investment, cutting some roles while hiring engineers to build AI infrastructure. Gartner analyst Kathy Ross calls it reinvesting funds in AI, hoping for success down the line.
How much are software engineers earning in 2026?
Median base-salary offers at venture-backed startups have reached $200,000, up 25% from 2022, according to Levels.fyi. Some new CS graduates at seed-stage companies are seeing offers above $300,000. The average starting salary for CS majors is projected at $81,500, up 7% year over year.
What is experience creep in tech hiring?
Experience creep describes employers raising experience requirements for postings. Indeed data shows the share of tech postings requiring five or more years of experience jumped from 37% to 42% between mid-2022 and mid-2025. This squeezes recent graduates while benefiting more experienced workers.
Will AI eventually replace software engineers?
BCG classifies software engineering as an amplified role where AI boosts productivity without replacing humans. MIT research projects AI will reach minimally sufficient performance on 80-95% of text tasks by 2029, but core engineering value lies in system design and judgment AI cannot yet replicate.
AI-generated summary, reviewed by an editor. More on our AI guidelines.
Harkaram Grewal
Maps the India–Germany–U.S. AI triangle from New Delhi. Background in cross-market operations and business development. Writes about supply chains, enterprise adoption, and talent—the unsexy forces that actually move global AI.
