Borrowing against your own pipeline

Jobs for under-25s in computer programming fell 44% in a single year, the first drop in UK digital-sector employment in a decade.

The UK government's new AI Adoption Plan flags it as a warning sign and lands on the right response: redesign early-career roles for the AI era, don't cut them.

What I like is the honesty. The plan admits there is no conclusive proof AI caused the fall, then argues we should act anyway, because if you wait for proof you have already lost a cohort. Its Early Careers Jobs Alliance asks employers to protect structured learning and redesign junior roles around judgement, rather than deleting the training ground for the next generation of managers.

This is the talent-debt point, made by a government: cutting the junior rung looks efficient this year and shows up as missing capability in five.