Ireland's Tech Sector Faces Acute AI Job Crisis as 20,000 ICT Jobs Lost in 12 Months
Ireland's ICT employment collapses amid AI adoption, with youth employment down a third since 2023 and major tech firms announcing sweeping cuts.
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Ireland’s ICT Employment Crisis
Ireland has lost roughly 20,000 ICT jobs in the past 12 months alone, according to reporting from May 2026. The losses hit younger workers particularly hard: employment in ICT among the under 30s in Ireland dropped by almost one third between 2023 and 2025.
In the tech sector specifically, young workers aged 15 to 29 experienced employment falling 20% between 2023 and 2025. These figures are especially significant because more than 6% of Ireland’s workforce is employed in the tech sector, higher than the European Union average.
Major Tech Companies Announce Cuts
The job losses reflect aggressive cost-cutting by major technology employers. Meta announced combined cuts of 1,070 jobs with one of its contractors, Covalen, as the social media giant invests in AI teams that would result in flattening teams. Oracle told the Irish Government it plans to axe some 150 Irish jobs, about 15 per cent of its workforce in the Republic, related to spending on AI.
Entry-Level Roles Disappear
Nearly half of Irish employers have reduced the number of entry and graduate-level roles available in 2026 according to a survey by recruitment platform IrishJobs. This trend aligns with findings from Stanford’s Digital Economy Lab, which found a 16% decline in early-career employment across the most AI-exposed occupations since late 2022, when OpenAI’s ChatGPT was released.
The Broader Picture
Ireland’s experience reflects a global pattern. Tech and finance sectors lost 28,000 jobs per month on average in 2026, up from lower rates in previous years, in the two sectors where AI adoption rates have been fastest. AI is being cited as the most cited reason behind over 100,000 job cut announcements in 2026.
The Irish jobs market is showing acute exposure to AI-driven disruption. In November 2025, over 11% of all job postings in Ireland on Indeed referenced AI-related terms, around three times the level recorded in both the U.S. and Europe.
Source: RTE
Developments since publication
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The IMF said that realising AI productivity gains requires continuous reskilling and upskilling of Ireland's labour force. Source
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IMF mission chief to Ireland Yan Sun said that approximately 40 per cent of jobs globally could be exposed — either replaced or complemented — by AI, and that Ireland's exposure is higher than most ad Source
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Ireland is generating jobs requiring AI skills at between two and three times the pace of neighbouring countries. Source
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AI is likely responsible for at least some of a recent slowdown in youth employment in Ireland, according to a report from the Expert Group on Future Skills Needs (EGFSN). Source
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CSO figures show employment growth among people aged 15 to 24 in Ireland has been flat over the past two years and contracted over the past year. Source
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AI could affect more than 40 per cent of jobs in Ireland, either replacing them or complementing them, according to the IMF. Source
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The IMF said Ireland was 'relatively more exposed' than other advanced economies to 'novel' economic risks that AI technology poses to employment and to financial markets. Source
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IMF mission chief to Ireland Yan Sun stated that Ireland's exposure to AI transformation is higher than most advanced countries. Source