PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla. — Economic uncertainty, technological shifts and evolving workplace expectations are changing the job market and how candidates navigate their job searches.
Finding a job in 2026 means identifying new in-demand positions. Across the country, that increasingly means something to do with artificial intelligence.
WATCH BELOW: AI, health care jobs surge as 2026 job market shifts
The emerging AI industry, which has targeted downtown West Palm Beach, is carving out careers in AI engineering and product management. Those jobs look to be in demand even as job outlooks soften.
"In the future and even now, we need to incorporate AI into every profession," Julia Dattolo with Palm Beach County Career Source said.
The University of Southern California lists AI engineer and AI product manager as top jobs for the new year. Also on that list are digital marketing strategist and health care administrator.
"The largest growing sector, the one that has the most jobs, is health care, so that's No. 1," Dattolo said.
New medical centers opening in Port St. Lucie and Palm Beach Gardens are fueling the growth locally.
As for South Florida, the job landscape is changing with the construction of new office space and the new branding of West Palm Beach as Wall Street South.
"We were originally a county that focused on agriculture and hospitality," Dattolo says about Palm Beach County. "While hospitality is booming and doing a great job, we have become more diversified with the local economy, with so many industries coming in like business services, financial, IT."
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The growth comes as more companies seek out the South Florida sunshine.
Landing that job does take effort. During our "Let's Hear It" reports on finding jobs in September, a career strategist at ZipRecruiter offered the following advice.
"If you're a job seeker who can strike a powerful balance between relevant tech skills and high-impact, human-centered skills, those are the job seekers that are highly desired right now," said Sam DeMase from ZipRecruiter.
2026 is likely to be a year of challenges and change.
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