H1 2025 Job Market Summary - UK
Here are the 7 key topics that I see being discussed in the London scaleup ecosystem, by VC / PE-backed companies.
1. AI talent is hot, obviously
Salaries are up, and companies are hiring fast.
Are we seeing a job market that’s splitting in two: AI-related jobs vs non-AI jobs?
Because AI-connected roles command high salaries (which seems to include any role working in or servicing the AI sector).
And for everyone else, it’s getting harder to stand out. The pressure to perform is relentless, and the bar just keeps rising, with salaries stagnating.
Here are the hottest AI-related roles right now:
AI Data Scientist / Data Engineer
Marketing Automation Engineers (a newly created role)
Head of Growth (sales x marketing hybrid)
AI Sales
Senior Engineers Exploring AI tools
C-level upgrades - 1 in, 1 out - with a sharper AI lens
2. AI isn’t always the cause of layoffs
As much as AI is shouldering the blame, in many cases, it’s a business model reset, with underperformers asked to exit the building to make room for the new AI skills.
→ Because the new operating model is lean, with smaller teams and more automation.
3. The UK still feels like the poor cousin
The UK still feels like America's poor cousin in competition, while the US and the Middle East are throwing serious cash at AI talent to power ahead.
If this continues, there is a strong chance that the ambitious and go-getters will be gone soon.
4. HR has taken a hit
Led by M Zuckerberg and E Musk, there has been a move to reduce HR teams. Now, People teams are stripped back, overworked, and we’re seeing the cracks appear. It's gone too far.
5. The Big Gen Z Lockout
→ Gen Z grads are hitting a wall.
Despite qualifications, they're struggling to land jobs.
With senior teams clinging to roles and opportunities narrowing, it’s starting to feel like the drawbridge is coming up.
No more room at the Inn for newbies?
6. The summer of replacement?
→ Forget the quiet summer, because leadership hiring is surging.
Underperforming management teams are being swapped out, fast, with more VP and C-suite candidates approached for replacement roles.
Holidays are out. Restructuring is in.
7. AI vs. AI, with no humans in sight
The job market is descending into an AI screening hellscape, where bots read bot-written CVs and human judgment is nowhere to be found.
The result?
✔️ Great candidates buried
✖️ Bad ones elevated
😩 Hiring managers drowning in noise.
💥 Are you a Founder, Operator, or Investor at a VC/PE-backed company?
If you’re thinking about driving revenue, replacing underperformers, launching a new market, or gearing up to raise, then we should talk.
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