A Cold Start to Tech Hiring in 2026 – LinkedIn

Monday, January 5, 2026 | By Prabhu Mallikarjunan For years, India’s IT sector was the undisputed engine of the country’s talent market, at one point commanding a staggering 85% dominance of all active job openings. Campus recruitment and coder bootcamps helped in riding an endless growth cycle. But as we step into the new year, the ‘builder’ energy celebrated just months ago is meeting a harsh statistical reality. The latest Xpheno Active Tech Jobs Outlook report reveals that India’s tech hiring has caught a cold it simply cannot shake off. As January 2026 begins, demand for active tech talent has plummeted by 24% year-on-year . What was once a peak of 2,62,000 active roles in early 2022 has now withered to just 1,03,000— a steep 60% drop from its golden era .  While the industry has recently buzzed with phrases like ‘vibe coding’ and AI orchestration, boardrooms are focused on a more sobering trajectory. IT services, the traditional engine of employment, remain stagnant at 41,000 active openings.  This is not a sudden freeze. It’s a prolonged chill. As Xpheno co-founder Kamal Karanth bluntly puts it, the Indian tech sector caught a cold in late 2022 and has since struggled to
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