In February 2026, IBM said it will triple its entry-level hiring in the United States this year. This surprised many people. In May 2023, IBM CEO Arvind Krishna had said the company would pause or slow hiring for some back-office jobs that AI could do. He said about 30% of 26,000 non-customer-facing roles might be replaced by AI and automation over five years. (bloomberg.com)
So why is IBM hiring more beginners now? IBM’s chief human resources officer, Nickle LaMoreaux, says the answer is simple: do not stop hiring young workers; redesign their jobs. At Charter’s AI summit in New York City on February 10, 2026, she said the companies that succeed in the next three to five years will be the ones that “double down” on entry-level hiring. She also said employers need to “rewrite every job” because AI can now do many routine tasks that junior workers used to do. Charter said IBM is tripling entry-level hiring even in areas like software development. (charterworks.com)
In other words, AI is changing entry-level work, not ending it. New workers may spend less time on simple coding, paperwork, or basic questions. Instead, they may spend more time on teamwork, judgment, customer contact, and checking AI’s output. This idea matches a wider trend in the job market. Indeed Hiring Lab reported in January 2026 that overall US hiring was still weak, but job postings that mention AI were growing, including in marketing and human resources. (charterworks.com)
IBM also seems to believe that companies still need a talent pipeline for the future. An IBM study released in May 2025 found that 54% of surveyed CEOs were hiring for AI-related roles that did not exist a year earlier, and 31% said part of their workforce would need retraining or reskilling within three years. The message is hopeful: in the AI age, human workers still matter. But their jobs must become smarter, more human, and more flexible. (newsroom.ibm.com)










