Indeed chief economist says the sectors most exposed to AI are seeing a big growth in job demand | Fortune

Industries face major changes from AI, but job roles are not necessarily eliminated from company staffing. Sectors most exposed to AI can experience increased demand for the jobs affected. Software development illustrates the shift: traditional coding roles face tougher hiring conditions as tools automate parts of programming, while AI-fluent developers see renewed opportunities. Job postings for software development increased year over year, and a large share now mention AI, indicating growth in roles that collaborate with AI systems. Hiring remains sluggish overall, yet postings mentioning AI have risen sharply, creating an AI-adjacent labor market. AI-related skills also command higher wages.

"“The sectors that are most exposed to AI right now are seeing the most growth in terms of demand for those jobs,” Gudell recently said onstage at Fortune' s Workplace Innovation Summit."

"The executive at the hiring platform uses software developers as an example. As advanced tools have evolved to write code, traditional developers are having a harder time finding jobs-yet within that same industry, AI-fluent developers are experiencing a renaissance. Software development job postings on Indeed increased 14% year-over-year in April 2026, and more than 47% of those postings now mention AI, suggesting the growth is concentrated in roles that require working alongside the technology rather than competing with it."

"That premium is emerging against an otherwise sluggish backdrop. The U.S. unemployment rate sits at 4.3%, with fewer than one job opening per unemployed worker, and overall job postings are barely above their pre-pandemic baseline. Yet postings mentioning AI have surged more than 130% over the same stretch-a divergence that has effectively split the labor market into AI-adjacent winners and everyone else."

"“AI is creating a whole bunch of new jobs, and interestingly enough, if you are an AI software developer, things are looking quite good for you,” Gudell continued. “There's a wage premium on your skills right now.”"

Read at Fortune