Technology job postings requiring artificial intelligence skills climbed 88% in September 2026 compared to the same month in 2025, growing roughly five times faster than the average rate for tech positions, according to Dice's September 2026 Jobs Report. Overall IT job listings increased 17% year over year, continuing an upward trend after a modest decline in August. As companies move forward with AI deployment plans, they're now shifting their attention toward capabilities like AI ethics, responsibility, and risk oversight to handle emerging threats as these technologies become standard practice.
The sharpest increases in skill demand over the past year center on AI-related competencies. Claude AI skills saw demand jump 1,033%, while agentic AI rose 446% and responsible AI climbed 401%. Enterprise integration grew 376%, AI agents increased 308%, and AI infrastructure expanded 283%. Month-to-month growth tells a slightly different story: electronic engineering led with 64% growth, followed by Autodesk Revit at 57%, endpoint detection and prevention at 51%, and creative problem solving also at 51%. Financial technology skills rose 43%, signaling that organizations are hunting for talent capable of managing both the security vulnerabilities and the costs associated with AI systems. September also brought increased demand for database management systems, team performance management, data migration, and demonstration skills.
The Washington-Arlington-Alexandria metro area posted 19,248 IT job openings in September, overtaking the New York-Newark-Jersey City region, which fell from over 20,000 postings in June to just above 16,000 in September. Dallas-Fort Worth listed 10,966 openings, Chicago reported 8,385, and San Francisco recorded 8,371. According to the report, metro areas around Dallas, Chicago, and San Francisco have held relatively steady since June, suggesting potential hiring stability. The most sought-after positions include software engineers, data engineers, systems engineers, electrical engineers, business analysts, data scientists, network engineers, systems administrators, data analysts, and AI engineers. By June, 75% of US technology job postings required AI fluency, up 178% year over year.
Organizations are pivoting their hiring strategies as AI implementation matures. For businesses already ahead in AI adoption, the report notes that the current priority has shifted to cybersecurity, governance, responsible and ethical AI use, and financial operations to support AI-related expenses. The rise in demand for API integration, data exchange, and enterprise connection skills reflects a push to link AI systems to existing enterprise data and workflows. Companies are particularly focused on roles that blend consulting and systems management, including Appian developers, Oracle Cloud financial consultants, ServiceNow managers, principal consultants, and technology consultants, alongside cyber threat intelligence analysts and configuration analysts.
Businesses across industries will continue seeking tech workers to bring AI strategies to life, requiring a broad spectrum of AI fluency and specialized skills, the report concludes. This pattern appears set to persist as the job market gradually recovers from several turbulent years. The surge in security and finance-related hiring alongside AI roles suggests companies are building guardrails around their AI investments, not just racing to deploy them. Organizations that balance innovation with oversight may find themselves better positioned as regulatory scrutiny and operational complexity both intensify.