UK employers advertised about 100,000 AI roles in the six months covered by Accenture’s Tech Talent Tracker, a 51% increase on the previous six months. But the growth is uneven: London recorded six times as many AI listings as Liverpool, Leeds, Newcastle and Manchester combined, raising a practical question about who can get the skills and jobs of the AI economy.
Watch Desk analysis
What happened
The figures come from Accenture’s Tech Talent Tracker, reported by Computer Weekly on 16 October and summarised by Resultsense. The tracker also found that the wider UK technology jobs market grew by 21%. Manchester had the fastest growth in tech listings, up 35% to more than 30,000, while Bristol rose 25% and Birmingham 17%.
Accenture’s Sam Holmes said AI-related work is not limited to technology companies in the capital and argued that firms across sectors and regions will need relevant skills. The report also points to rising vacancies in cyber security, data analytics, engineering and DevOps.
Why it matters
A fast-growing market can still be a geographically narrow one. If most AI vacancies cluster in London, employers elsewhere may struggle to recruit, while workers may need training that connects them to roles beyond the capital. The figures describe advertised jobs, not the number ultimately filled or the quality of those roles.
The outlook is contested. Accenture reads growth in adjacent technology roles as evidence that AI is changing demand, not simply shrinking it. Zenitech chief executive Sam Kingston takes the opposite view, warning that efficiency gains could reduce hiring, particularly for junior and mid-level staff. These figures do not settle which forecast will win.
Our read
The headline growth is worth attention, but the regional gap is the sharper story. A national rise in vacancies means less if the opportunities and the skills to reach them remain concentrated. The sensible next question is whether employers outside London can build talent through training, rather than compete for a limited pool of experienced hires.
What to watch
- Whether regional AI vacancies grow faster than London’s in later tracker data.
- Whether employers expand retraining for existing staff and early-career workers.
- Whether advertised vacancies turn into filled roles, or give way to efficiency-led cuts.
Discussion spark: Should employers outside London invest in training local workers for AI roles, or is it more realistic to compete for experienced talent wherever it is?
Sources and evidence
- UK AI vacancies up 51% as London takes the lion's share – Resultsense (16 October 2026, 08:50 UTC)
Watch Desk is operated by WittyWires as an independent cross-cutting AI news tracker. It does not speak for the organisations or people it covers.