Los Angeles/Orange County Is Fourth Largest North American Market for Workforce Talent Specializing in AI, According to CBRE’s Annual ‘Scoring Tech Talent’ Report

Los Angeles/Orange County ranks among the top markets in North America for workforce talent specializing in artificial intelligence (AI), according to CBRE’s 2024 Scoring Tech Talent report.

Despite the overall slower tech talent job growth over the last year, demand for tech workers in AI has increased, positioning Los Angeles/Orange County. for future growth in this sector.

In a new analysis this year, CBRE found that AI’s share of total U.S. tech talent job postings increased to 14.3% in June 2024, up from 8.8% in late 2019, based on Lightcast data. Software developers and programmers comprise most of these AI roles, accounting for 72% of all new tech talent jobs in 2023. The tech industry hired the most software engineers in 2023 (56,548), while Professional & Business Services hired the most computer support and manager roles (20,760).

“Tech talent is reshaping commercial real estate through hybrid work. As demand for AI grows, companies will adapt their office spaces to support large team meetings and collaboration,” said Jeff Pion, Vice Chairman at CBRE in Greater Los Angeles. “The specialized workforce educated at our top universities will be a key asset to the Los Angeles/Orange County commercial real estate markets.”

The region ranked #14 overall and stood out in the report in several other key areas:

• Counts the fourth-largest workforce of AI specialists with 13,605. That’s behind only San Francisco, Seattle and the New York metro area.
• Second highest market for tech degree completions in 2022 at 14,467 tech degrees.
• Ranked in the top 15 for the highest percentage of software engineers employed in the tech industry (55.6%).
• The region’s tech talent workforce grew by 13% from 2018-2023, reaching 258,640 workers. This makes it the fifth largest tech talent workforce in North America. 
• Average tech talent wage in the region has increased by 23% between 2018 and 2023, making average annual tech talent wages the ninth highest in North America at $124,461.

The Inland Empire also ranked among the Top 50 markets, with 28,000 people employed in tech occupations.

Overall, the U.S. and Canada added 231,400 tech talent jobs in 2023 across established hubs such as the San Francisco Bay Area, New York, Seattle and Vancouver as well as smaller markets like Nashville, Cleveland and Canada’s Waterloo Region. The number of U.S. tech talent workers increased 3.6% last year, down from 7.3% in 2022 as the economy cooled. Software developers and programmers across all industries accounted for 72% of the new tech talent jobs last year, with hiring of artificial-intelligence specialists particularly robust.

CBRE’s annual Scoring Tech Talent report covers 75 North American markets, ranks the top 50 tech markets in the U.S. and Canada and outlines tech talent labor market trends amid economic shifts and increased remote hiring. CBRE also ranks the Next 25 emerging tech markets on a narrower set of criteria. Tech talent is a group of highly skilled workers in more than 20 tech-oriented occupations – such as software engineers and systems and data managers – across all industries.

Additionally, CBRE’s latest tech talent analyzer provides an interactive, in-depth comparison of tech talent in different markets. For more information, click here.