AI is reshaping Irish jobs market, boosting demand for human skills

15 Jun 2026, 09:36 · IrishCentral

The report, which analyzed more than one billion job advertisements across six continents, including Ireland, finds that companies most able to adopt AI are expanding hiring faster than their peers, while the structure of work itself is undergoing a significant shift.

PwC says AI is driving a “two-track” global labor market.

In so-called “professionalised” roles—where AI automates routine tasks and elevates the importance of specialist judgement—job growth is outpacing “democratised” roles, where AI makes work easier for non-experts to perform.

Examples such as radiologists and recruiters fall into the professionalized category and are seeing roughly twice the growth in job availability compared with democratised roles such as IT service managers or medical secretaries.

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At entry level, the report suggests AI is raising expectations of junior staff.

Based on 2.4 million entry-level roles in the US, jobs most exposed to AI are now seven times more likely to require traditionally senior-level human skills including motivational leadership, strategic decision-making and team building.

These “seniorized” entry-level roles have grown 35% since 2019, while other entry-level positions have declined by 10% over the same period.

Ireland sees near-doubling of AI hiring

In Ireland, AI-related hiring almost doubled between 2024 and 2025, reflecting accelerating adoption across sectors. The share of job postings requiring AI skills rose to 3.7% in 2025, up from about 2.3% a year earlier.

PwC found that Irish roles requiring AI skills are growing more than five times faster than the overall jobs market since 2019, at 83% compared with 16%.

These roles are also increasingly associated with higher advertised salaries, particularly in technology and financial services.

The report highlights how AI skills are acting as a “productivity multiplier”, complementing other specialist capabilities rather than replacing them.

It also shows that the most AI-exposed jobs in Ireland are undergoing the fastest transformation in required skills, with the top quartile experiencing a 4.45-times greater shift since 2019 compared with just 1.15 times in the lowest quartile.

AI adoption is also broadening across the workforce.

AI user roles grew 84% in 2025 compared with 2024, while AI developer roles increased by 73%, indicating that AI is no longer confined to specialist technical positions but is increasingly embedded in everyday work.

‘Skills shift is accelerating across the economy’

Laoise Mullane, Director of Workforce Consulting and AI Adoption Lead at PwC Ireland, said the data shows a growing divide in how businesses are using AI.

“Across the global economy, we’re starting to see a clearer divergence in how organizations are using AI to create value,” she said.

“Those seeing the strongest returns are using AI to amplify human expertise, accelerate innovation and unlock new sources of growth. As a result, they are pulling ahead not just on productivity, but on overall business performance.”

She added that Irish organizations are seeing similar trends, with the most significant gains coming where companies redesign work rather than simply introducing new tools.

“In Ireland, we are seeing a similar pattern, with growing AI adoption across the workforce. However, the impact is more pronounced where organizations are using AI to rethink how work is done, rather than simply adding tools to existing processes,” she said.

Productivity gap widens between firms

The report also highlights a widening productivity gap between companies most and least exposed to AI.

Firms in the most AI-intensive sectors recorded 34% productivity growth in 2025 compared with 2018 levels, compared with 24% among the least exposed.

Within this group, PwC identifies a “super-star” effect. The top 20% of AI-exposed companies achieved labor productivity growth of 163% relative to 2018—nearly five times higher than the broader group of AI-exposed firms.

Despite expectations that automation would reduce staffing needs, headcount growth at highly AI-exposed companies is also stronger, rising 52% compared with 36% at less exposed firms.

PwC says this suggests AI is acting more as an expansion tool than a replacement technology, enabling firms to scale output and workforce simultaneously.

Salaries and skills premium emerging

Globally, jobs requiring AI skills command significantly higher pay, with salaries estimated to be around 62% higher on average than roles without such requirements, up from 57% last year. The premium is particularly strong in consumer markets, where it reaches 118%, compared with 16% in the public sector.

Jobs requiring specialist AI capabilities, such as machine learning or prompt engineering, are also expanding rapidly, growing around eight times faster than the overall labor market.

Technology, media and telecommunications, along with professional services, account for the largest share of AI-related job growth, while the health sector remains at the lower end.

‘Workforce transformation is unavoidable’

PwC Ireland Partner Ger McDonough said the findings underline how AI is reshaping both job design and skill expectations.

Laoise Mullane, director, PwC Ireland Workforce
“We’re seeing a shift in how experience and expertise play out in the workplace,” he said.

“In some areas, AI is taking on routine tasks and raising the bar on the skills people need, placing more emphasis on judgment, adaptability, and leadership. In others, it is making certain tasks more accessible, broadening who can perform them.”

He added that employers will need to take a more structured approach to workforce planning and skills development as AI adoption accelerates.

“For organizations, it means taking a more deliberate approach to how talent is developed, ensuring people build the capabilities they need to thrive in this new working environment.”