AI: Demand for Skills Grows Without Mass Layoffs
The number of job offers mentioning AI has significantly increased over three years, but Hellowork does not observe massive layoffs attributed to this technology. The effects are concentrated in certain functions, while security and compliance constraints hinder the promised gains.
The decline in job offers in 2026 is not related to AI
In the first half of 2026, job offers in the global labor market decreased by 9%. According to Loïc Le Terrien, this contraction is explained by cyclical factors and not by social plans related to AI. He asserts that French companies are not making significant cuts in the name of AI, unlike major American tech players. He places current deployments in a phase of experimentation and testing. He also calls for caution regarding alarmist announcements transposed from the United States, reminding that it is legally easier to lay off employees across the Atlantic.
Bottlenecks: security, GDPR, and organization hinder gains
The operational deployment of AI encounters bottlenecks. The acceleration of application development is accompanied, according to Loïc Le Terrien, by new complexities in cybersecurity and GDPR compliance. He observes that some tasks are completed faster, but organizational questions arise, and no tenfold productivity increase is noted.
Demand for AI skills concentrated in Paris and IT
Between the first quarter of 2023 and the first quarter of 2026, the number of job offers referencing AI skills has increased by 2.4 times. This demand is highly polarized: 54% of offers are located in Île-de-France. The most affected sectors are IT, at 53%, and data professions, at 25%. The sought-after skills include prompting, mastery of generative AI tools, and management of autonomous agents. Loïc Le Terrien links this dynamic to a rapid rise since the launch of ChatGPT. During the same period, it is also noted that job offers mentioning AI have multiplied by 2.4 over three years.
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Where automation is progressing: administrative tasks, support, and customer relations
Repetitive and administrative tasks are among the first to be affected by automation. At client recruiting firms, positions involving data re-entry between software are deemed very suitable for AI. Technical support and customer relations are also shifting with the arrival of more sophisticated conversational agents. The integration of agents that draw from internal documentation provides productivity gains. In a small team, it is possible to eliminate two or three positions, while the remaining members must acquire new skills to oversee and monitor these agents. At this stage, AI is primarily focused on automating repetitive administrative tasks and reorganizing work.
Who is exposed and how to prepare
Operational or manual profiles are currently less exposed to replacement than IT or data profiles, although technology jobs are expected to be significantly impacted. The rise of AI clearly affects recent graduates and junior profiles, whose execution tasks are gradually being automated. Customer relations, sales, care, and manual jobs are considered difficult to replace due to the human factor. For service jobs and white-collar workers, Loïc Le Terrien recommends learning to master AI technologies to remain employable. He finds it challenging to predict the situation in five years and believes that continuous adaptation will be essential. Meanwhile, in June 2026, a survey indicates that one in ten French people believes AI threatens their job, and a study published earlier in 2026 mentions a risk to one in six jobs in France.
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