AI and clean energy drive job growth, reshape US labor market

The rise of AI and clean energy technologies is set to reshape the American workforce, with major job growth projected in tech and energy-related industries, according to a new report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

AI-fueled demand for software development, data processing, and cybersecurity is expected to boost employment in professional and technical services by 7.5% and in the information sector by 6.5% over the next decade, according to the BLS report.

By 2030, a projected global labor shortage of up to 50 million workers will leave jobs unfilled, and 59% of employees will need significant reskilling as 78 million new jobs will emerge, demanding skills we’re only beginning to define, according to the World Economic Forum (WEF). Some of the fastest-growing jobs will be found in technology, data, and AI, the WEF’s report states.

There has been a 40% month-over-month increase in demand for AI/ML skills among small-and-medium-sized businesses, with client spend on AI work up 30% year-over-year and 51% more for prompt engineering, according to a new report from freelance marketplace provider Upwork.

The most in-demand skills include those that involve human-AI collaboration, such as fact-checking and video editing, according to the report. At the same time, Upwork is seeing a significant rise in demand for roles like career coaching and training & development.

“This reflects businesses’ growing need for adaptability and guidance, highlighting how centric roles are essential to complement advanced AI capabilities in a fast-changing work landscape,” Teng Liu, economist for the Upwork Research Institute (URI), said in an email reply to Computerworld.

Even in a softer job market, one in four business leaders turned to freelancers in August to access specialized skills and fill talent gaps, Liu said.

Demand for advanced AI skills like generative modeling and data annotation is rising fast — along with freelancer earnings in these areas. At the same time, roles like career coaching and training are also seeing strong growth, showing that human-centric skills remain essential alongside AI, he said.

“Our research suggests companies aren’t necessarily transitioning workers into tech roles, but rather enabling people to augment their roles with AI,” said Gabby Burlacu, senior research manager for the URI.

“It’s not that the need for skilled humans performing this work is disappearing; it’s that the roles themselves are evolving, incorporating a greater technology component than they have in the past,” she added. “That’s a key nuance to the discussion of growing and shrinking jobs in an AI world: Certain jobs as we know them may be automated, but that does not actually eliminate the need for a skilled person performing them differently and alongside AI.”

Spend on AI prompt engineering is up 52% year-over-year, and demand is growing for skills like generative AI modeling and AI agent design, according to Upwork. New roles like Chief AI Officer are emerging, but the bigger shift is how AI now touches everything — from writing and design to project management and finance. It’s becoming a general-purpose technology transforming how all work gets done.

For example, in a post-ChatGPT world, Upwork’s research still found that 15% of the jobs posted on its site come from new demand for content creators, but those jobs now require twice as many AI skills, Burlacu said.

At the same time, the push toward electrification — driven by AI, electric vehicles, and data centers — is powering a surge in renewable energy jobs. Solar, wind, geothermal, and tidal energy industries top the list of fastest-growing sectors, projected to add over 41,000 jobs, while battery and electrical component manufacturing will add nearly 48,400 positions, according to BLS data.

However, automation and AI are also expected to lead to significant job declines in office, sales, and production roles. Overall AI and mathematical occupations, led by data scientists and cybersecurity analysts, are forecast to grow over 10%, more than triple the national average, the BLS’s report showed.

Yet, only 10% of CIOs and senior tech leaders say AI is fully integrated across their organization, leaving a lot of room for adoption growth, according to a study by staffing firm ManpowerGroup.

AI will boost demand for tech roles while displacing repetitive jobs, according to Raj Namboothiry, SVP & head of North America at ManpowerGroup.

To prepare for these disruptions, job seekers should focus on developing “adjacent skills” to AI, such as data analysis and critical thinking, to leverage AI rather than compete with it, while companies should invest in upskilling and reskilling their existing workforce to adapt to new technologies, he said.

“Strengthen your critical thinking, problem-solving, and creativity, as these are uniquely human abilities that AI cannot replicate,” Namboothiry said. “And focus on roles that require human-centric skills like ethical considerations — bioethics, AI governance.”

AI’s impact on jobs will be multifaceted and deep, according to Namboothiry:

Growth: Rising demand for roles in IT, data science, and AI integration.

Decline: Job losses in routine-heavy fields like sales, production, and admin.

Productivity: AI boosts efficiency in tasks like data entry and logistics.

The next generation of IT workers must become “super workers” with the ability to use AI as a tool to enhance their productivity and effectiveness, rather than being replaced by it.

A ManpowerGroup study and survey revealed that one-third of employers believe AI cannot replace or augment critical human skills such as:

Ethical judgment (33%)

Personalized customer service (31%)

Team management (30%)

Communication (27%)

Strategic thinking (27%)

Companies should prioritize upskilling their existing workforce with training in new technologies essential for the AI-driven economy. By strategically integrating AI into business operations, while also keeping the human element in mind, organizations can boost efficiency without losing sight of employee impact.

“Create a work environment that encourages continuous learning and adaptability to keep pace with rapid technological changes,” Namboothiry said.