A growing number of scientists, engineers and tech workers have seen colleagues leave after AI changed their work 'beyond recognition'

Date:
Fri, 23 Oct 2026 10:20:00 +0000

Description:
Too many STEM professionals say AI has changed their role too much or added too much workload so they're just leaving.

FULL STORY ======================================================================Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Threads Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Subscribe to our newsletter AI is impacting career progression opportunities and increasing workloads Long-term skills gaps
could impact companies losing their STEM workers Senior workers are taking on more junior roles While we're starting to accept that AI might not be here to replace human workers, we are increasingly seeing the technology changing roles. Now, 15% of UK STEM professionals have reported seeing colleagues
leave because of how much AI has actually changed their role.

However the exact factors vary wildly, with reduced career progression opportunities (14%) and unsustainable workloads (12%) among the most common. And that's all bad news for employers, because nearly half (45%) they their organization struggled to replace specialist employees who left over the past year. Latest Videos From TechRadar Watch full video here: Workers are leaving because AI is changing their job too much Ultimately, the report by SThree concludes that STEM skills take multiple years to develop, and by losing access to some of the most skilled workers, companies are putting themselves in a position where they could face some pretty serious longer-term skills gaps.

"So when workers vote with their feet, businesses can be left with lasting skills gaps that can be costly," UK MD Rakesh Patel explained, pointing
toward a retention challenge that many AI-using companies face. You may like How to address the white-collar exodus Employers now expect basic AI skills from all workers Workers are worried AI will expose they don't know how to do their jobs properly

And while many reports have accused AI of replacing entry-level workers, leaving existing workers to become AI agent managers, SThree's data found
that one in three (29%) senior employees are actually taking on responsibilities that were previously assigned to more junior employees.

One aspect that many recent studies have agreed on is that employers are deploying AI too quickly without considering its impacts on workers
something that 37% of workers in this particular study agree with. Are you a pro? Subscribe to our newsletter Sign up to the TechRadar Pro newsletter to get all the top news, opinion, features and guidance your business needs to succeed! Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting
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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/pro/a-growing-number-of-scientists-engineers-and-tec h-workers-have-seen-colleagues-leave-after-ai-changed-their-work-beyond-recogn ition


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