IBM's chief scientist has advice for entry-level engineers: Think beyond Big Tech (www.businessinsider.com)

IBM chief scientist Ruchir Puri urged entry-level software engineers to widen their job searches beyond the familiar Big Tech roster, arguing that AI-driven transformation is creating substantive engineering roles across industries. Puri pointed to sectors such as transportation, manufacturing and retail — and household industrial names like John Deere — as places where engineers can build impactful systems that transform core business operations, not just consumer-facing products. His message: meaningful AI work and innovation aren’t confined to FAANG-style companies; the “massive enterprise landscape” needs software talent to deploy AI into real-world systems. The call is timely given a tighter hiring market: Handshake data shows job postings fell ~16% year‑over‑year while applications rose ~26%, and big tech has continued to downsize in 2025 (Salesforce, Meta, Microsoft, Amazon). IBM itself announced staff reductions but says it’s refocusing hiring on AI and quantum roles. For early-career engineers this means a strategic shift—target industry-specific AI/ML roles where domain knowledge and systems integration matter, expect to work on productionizing models into operations (transportation telemetry, manufacturing automation, retail personalization), and leverage broader employer pools for both impact and opportunity amid a saturated talent market.