Redpoint Ventures’ recent InfraRed Summit slide deck paints a clear picture of the bifurcation in the tech job market: one side is cooling off fast, while the other is red-hot and AI-fueled.
🔍 At a Glance: Tech Job Market
In 2025, the tech job market is splitting in two: generalist software engineering roles are slowing, while demand for AI and machine learning engineers is surging. Startups are freezing junior hires and prioritizing experienced AI talent, driven by the rise of automation and LLMs. This bi-modal trend, highlighted in Redpoint Ventures’ report, forces founders to rethink hiring strategies around upskilling, strategic partnerships, and AI-first differentiation.
If you’re a startup founder or growth leader, the implications are urgent. The job market is no longer flat—it’s fragmented—and navigating it wrong could stall your product roadmap or burn unnecessary capital.
Tech Job Market Hiring in 2025: The Two-Speed Market
According to data from Pave, SignalFire, and TrueUp:
- Entry-level software roles have collapsed, down 50%+ from pre-pandemic norms.
- AI engineering roles are booming, with startups scrambling to fill key AI/ML and infrastructure positions.
- The competition for senior talent is fierce, expensive, and often global.
This isn’t a temporary market wobble—it’s a structural shift.
The “Experience Paradox”
Here’s the kicker: even as demand for tech talent shrinks overall, companies are hiring more selectively. Junior roles are disappearing as AI replaces repetitive tasks. Startups now prefer mid-to-senior engineers who can lead integration, work with AI toolchains, and drive velocity.
This paradox is leaving young professionals stranded and inflating the value of AI-proficient engineers.
Founder’s Playbook: How to Navigate the Tech Job Market Divide
To survive and thrive in this new environment, startups must recalibrate how they think about hiring. Here’s what I recommend:
1. Differentiate for Top AI Talent
You’re competing with OpenAI, Google DeepMind, and top-funded startups. If you want elite talent, sell the mission, not just comp. Be bold with equity. Provide ownership over real, impactful work.
2. Upskill Your Current Team
Don’t ignore the talent you already have. Invest in internal AI literacy. Tools like GitHub Copilot, LangChain, and fine-tuned LLMs can dramatically boost productivity when combined with existing experience.
3. Use Fractional Experts
Full-time AI hires are scarce and costly. Consider engaging fractional AI CTOs, ML consultants, or contract AI architects to speed up your roadmap without burning runway.
4. Redesign Hiring Pipelines
If you’re not hiring juniors now, that’s fine—but plan ahead. Build partnerships with universities, accelerators, or bootcamps to source talent when the pendulum swings back.
5. Balance Talent with Capital Efficiency
AI engineers are now commanding $300K–$600K packages. Get creative: offer remote flexibility, 4-day weeks, or performance-based equity to stay competitive without blowing budgets.
Beyond Startups: Why This Shift Affects Everyone
This isn’t just a tech startup problem. AI is reshaping white-collar work across the board. From law to finance to healthcare, automation is trimming entry points and raising skill floors.
If you’re building a company in 2025, the question isn’t “Can we find talent?”
It’s “Are we targeting the right talent, at the right time, with the right model?”
Final Thought: The Edge Belongs to the Adaptable
Redpoint’s deck offers a wake-up call. The hiring playbooks of the 2010s won’t work in the AI-first 2025 economy. The winners will be companies that are fast, flexible, and future-focused.
As a startup founder, you must now operate like an AI-native company: lean, high-leverage, and relentlessly strategic with talent.
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