IBM Tripled Entry-Level Hiring in 2026 While Meta Cuts 8,000 Jobs

IBM confirmed in February 2026 that it will triple entry-level hiring in the US this year, even as Meta finished notifying roughly 8,000 employees of layoffs by July 22. The split is stark. IBM entry level hiring 2026 numbers now sit at three times the 2025 baseline, according to Chief HR Officer Nickle LaMoreaux, speaking at Charter's Leading with AI Summit in New York. Meanwhile, layoffs.fyi logged 267 tech layoff events and 185,894 workers cut in the first half of 2026 alone. For students graduating this year, the map of who is hiring has been redrawn in six months. Here's what you need to know before your fall applications go out.

What IBM entry level hiring 2026 actually looks like

LaMoreaux told Bloomberg the tripling is "across the board" and not limited to one function. IBM has not published a hard headcount number, but the company confirmed the increase covers software engineering, HR, customer-facing roles, and AI oversight positions. The roles themselves are being redesigned: software engineers will spend less time on routine coding and more on customer interaction, while HR staff will spend more time intervening with chatbots than answering repetitive questions. IBM's reasoning, per Fortune's February 13 report, is that cutting graduate hiring saves money short term but creates a management pipeline shortage later. The company hit the limits of AI-only workflows and pivoted back to humans.

Meta cut 8,000 while Microsoft joined the wave

Meta began notifying roughly 8,000 employees of layoffs starting May 20, 2026, with separations completed by July 22. That's about 10% of the company's workforce of just under 80,000 as of March. Engineering took a disproportionate hit: 2,212 software engineers at Meta headquarters were let go. CEO Mark Zuckerberg said publicly the cuts fund Meta's AI push, and roughly 7,000 workers were redirected into new AI teams like Applied AI Engineering. CNBC reported on April 24 that combined Meta and Microsoft job cuts topped 20,000 for the year, raising fresh concern about an AI-driven labor crisis for early-career workers specifically.

Amazon is hiring 11,000 interns and grads

AWS CEO Matt Garman went the opposite direction in a June 24, 2026 Fortune interview. Amazon plans to bring in about 11,000 interns and recent graduates this year, and Garman called replacing junior employees with AI "one of the dumbest ideas." His argument: if half of jobs really vanished, the economy would collapse, so "wipe out" and "change" are not the same thing. Garman told Platformer that Amazon now screens candidates on their ability to learn, not just their current skill set. That's a hiring signal worth reading carefully if you're applying to AWS, retail tech, or Amazon's operations research programs this cycle.

Google engineering hiring increase and the senior-talent shift

Google CEO Sundar Pichai has publicly committed to expanding Google's engineering workforce through 2026, and Google Careers is actively listing 2026 University Graduate roles for software and silicon engineering. But the Google engineering hiring increase skews heavily toward experienced hires. Industry data shows Big Tech hired 25% fewer new graduates in 2024 versus 2023, while hiring for professionals with two to five years of experience jumped 27%. Microsoft's university recruiting headcount for software engineering roles dropped an estimated 45% year-over-year. Amazon's own campus pipeline, once over 15,000 early-career technical hires in 2024, has narrowed toward applied AI and ML specialists.

Where the entry-level jobs actually are right now

Beyond IBM and Amazon, Cognizant CEO Ravi Kumar S. told Fortune the IT services firm hired 20,000 entry-level graduates in 2025 and expects that number to grow in 2026. Consulting, IT services, insurance tech, and mid-cap SaaS companies are absorbing much of the demand Big Tech has shed. AI startups are also aggressively recruiting new grads, especially those with practical experience shipping small projects. If your target list from 2024 was Meta, Google, and Microsoft, it needs a 2026 update. Add IBM, Amazon, Cognizant, and adjacent enterprise tech firms to the top of your outreach spreadsheet before recruiter season starts in September.

Key Takeaways

• IBM confirmed tripled entry-level US hiring in February 2026, per Bloomberg and Fortune reporting from CHRO Nickle LaMoreaux.
• Meta laid off roughly 8,000 people including 2,212 HQ engineers between May and July 2026.
• Amazon is hiring about 11,000 interns and new grads in 2026, per AWS CEO Matt Garman's June 24 Fortune interview.
• Google and Microsoft still recruit new grads, but Big Tech overall hired 25% fewer graduates in 2024 versus 2023.
• Cognizant, IBM, Amazon, and IT services firms now lead entry-level demand while Meta and Microsoft contract.

What's Next

Fall recruiter season opens in September 2026. IBM, Amazon, and Cognizant will run on-campus events and virtual info sessions through October, with most first-round interviews wrapping by mid-November. Track live openings on layoffs.fyi's companion hiring page, Google Careers' 2026 University Graduate filter, and Amazon.jobs/teams/jobs-for-grads. If Meta or Microsoft were on your target list, keep the application in but add three IBM or AWS roles for every one Meta application. The market has moved; your list should too.