• Swindon & Wiltshire Education, training and skills
• Monday October 5 2026

New programme to help 50 people into entry-level AI roles launched

A new South West programme will help 50 people into entry-level roles by March 2027, with at least half of the places reserved for women.

AI Talent Pipeline South West, run by techSPARK and Taught by Humans and funded by the UK Government, will connect jobseekers with employers across the region. It aims to tackle a growing disconnect: young people want work, employers need talent, but the hiring process is failing both sides.

The programme comes amid a sharp contraction in entry-level opportunities. There are 1.6 million fewer entry-level jobs than in 2005, while more than one million young people are out of work or training. Organisers say AI is accelerating that shift.

The scheme argues that AI is also making recruitment harder. Identical AI-generated CVs, automated screening, AI interviews and online tests mean employers struggle to identify genuine potential, while candidates cannot demonstrate what they can actually do.

A recent roundtable in Bath, facilitated by techSPARK and Taught by Humans with SETsquared, found few employers in the room were actively recruiting at entry level. Despite expectations that AI would create a wave of junior AI jobs, organisers say those roles largely do not exist in practice.

Laura Gemmell, founder of Taught by Humans, said the problem was a misunderstanding of what AI work actually involves.

“We’ve been talking about AI roles as if they’re all the same thing. They’re not,” she said.

“Most entry-level AI work isn’t building AI – it’s using it, or building things with it. Those roles are accessible, they exist right now, and the barrier to entry is lower than it’s ever been. The problem is that nobody – employers, candidates, job boards – has caught up with that yet.

“That’s what this programme is trying to fix.”

The programme will help employers define the roles they genuinely need and identify candidates with the right skills, or the potential to develop them. Jobseekers will be supported to build and evidence practical skills, while employers will be helped to write job descriptions that reflect real work rather than outdated recruitment criteria.

Although designed around entry-level AI roles, organisers say the distinction between an AI job and any other role is disappearing as AI becomes embedded across organisations.

Businesses do not need to be hiring for a dedicated AI position to take part. Opportunities could span technology, data and product, as well as operations, marketing and customer success.

Ben Shorrock, chief executive of techSPARK, said employers risked creating a future skills shortage if they stopped hiring juniors.

“Some of the best ideas in a business come from the people who’ve just walked through the door,” he said. “Juniors see things differently, pick up new technology quickly and ask the questions everyone else has stopped asking. They’re also tomorrow’s senior talent.

“If we stop creating entry-level roles, we’re storing up a skills gap for the future. This project helps employers make that investment with confidence.”

The programme is being developed with employers, jobseekers and local universities. More information is available at taughtbyhumans.com/techlocal-ai-talent-sw