The news
A cluster of workforce reports released between September 29 and October 2, 2026 shows companies are struggling to find AI skills, paying more for them and losing money when they lack them, according to coverage by CIO Dive. Together they make the AI skills gap a budget issue as much as a hiring one.
Pay first. A Payscale report found 58% of companies already pay premiums for AI skills or plan to, while 19% keep existing pay, 13% are evaluating and 8% consider AI skills irrelevant, CIO Dive reported on September 29. Payscale found 61% of employers rewrote job descriptions because of AI but fewer than half updated salary structures to match, and more than 40% of companies cannot find talent with the AI skills they need. Payscale warned that employees who upskill could resent new hires who command premiums of 20% to 40%.
Hiring is not keeping pace with demand. CompTIA's analysis of September labor data showed active IT job postings at a three-year high, with employers adding more than 272,000 open tech roles, CIO Dive reported on October 2. Yet hiring for tech roles across all sectors contracted by about 6,000 positions, and IT unemployment rose to 3.3% from 3.1% in August. Seth Robinson, CompTIA's vice president of research, said the gap between demand and supply may be growing.
Security skills are the fastest-moving area. Coursera's Global Skills Report showed enrollment in AI security training up 665% globally and 358% in the U.S., compared with 67% growth in AI course enrollment overall, CIO Dive reported on September 30. Training in agentic AI workflows, where software agents carry out multi-step tasks, grew more than sixfold globally.
The cost of gaps is showing up in projects. Pluralsight's Tech Skills Report 2026, a survey of 1,500 tech executives, technologists and learning leaders in the U.S., U.K. and Australia, found nearly 7 in 10 tech leaders had abandoned a project in the past year because employees lacked tech skills, CIO Dive reported on October 1. Nearly two in three executives said skills gaps cost their organization $250,000 or more in the past year, and 84% said gaps push projects over budget at least some of the time.
The numbers
- Companies paying or planning AI skill premiums (Payscale)
- 58%
- Possible new-hire premium (Payscale estimate)
- 20% to 40%
- New open tech roles in September (CompTIA)
- 272,000+
- IT unemployment, September (CompTIA)
- 3.3%
- Global AI security training enrollment growth (Coursera)
- 665%
- Execs citing $250,000+ cost of skills gaps in past year (Pluralsight)
- Nearly 2 in 3
Why CEOs should care
For CEOs and CHROs, the Payscale data describes a trap: pay new hires 20% to 40% more for AI skills and risk losing current staff who learn the same skills without a raise. A Marsh report cited by CIO Dive found more than 40% of workers believe leaving and rejoining pays better than staying. Ask HR whether salary bands reflect the job descriptions you rewrote for AI, and whether there is a defined reward for employees who certify in AI skills.
CFOs should look at Pluralsight's numbers as a hidden cost line. If skills gaps push most projects over budget at least sometimes, the cheaper fix may be funding training before a project starts, not adding contractors halfway through. But training alone is not enough: more than three in four executives in the Pluralsight survey said they have seen employees complete training or earn certifications yet still be unable to apply the skills on the job, so tie learning budgets to on-the-job practice and measured outcomes.
CISOs face the sharpest shortage. A Barracuda report cited by CIO Dive found nearly 4 in 10 businesses lack the skills to secure and govern AI tools. With agents now taking actions inside company systems, security teams need people who understand agent permissions and monitoring. Prioritize AI security training for existing security staff, where demand is surging, rather than waiting for scarce hires.
The bigger picture
The paradox in the CompTIA data, record postings alongside contracting hiring, suggests employers are holding out for specific skills rather than hiring broadly. Glassdoor chief economist Daniel Zhao told CIO Dive the cooler market can help employers find talent that would be hard to win in a hotter one. Companies that build skills internally may be less exposed to the premium race.
What’s next
Watch the October jobs data for whether tech hiring turns up, and year-end compensation cycles for whether more employers formalize AI pay premiums or upskilling rewards.
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