To start a career in technology in 2026, you still need the same foundation as before: logic, programming, data concepts, and English. The difference is that AI has entered the daily life of programmers, and companies now expect you to know how to use these tools without relying on them. The safest path is to study the basics calmly, use AI as a tutor, and show what you can do in real projects.
Below you can see what recent reports say about the market, where to get started, and how to take the first steps without shortcuts that can hinder you later.
What has changed with AI, according to the data
AI has become a common tool for programmers. In the Stack Overflow developer survey of 2026, released in October, with over 30,000 participants, 73% of those using programming assistants or agents reported using them every day. The most cited use is generating code in areas where the person is already proficient (67%), followed by debugging (61%). Only 20% use AI to deploy systems or solve problems within them.
Trust has a condition: 93% say they need to know where the information came from to trust what AI delivers. For newcomers, the message is clear. Knowing how to ask for code from an AI is the easy part. Knowing how to read, test, and correct that code is what sets you apart.
Among beginners, usage is even faster. The GitHub Octoverse 2025 report shows that almost 80% of new developers on the platform used Copilot in their first week. The same report ranks Brazil fourth in the world for the number of developers on GitHub, with 6.89 million accounts.
In the general job market, the World Economic Forum's Future of Jobs 2025 report, published in January 2025 and conducted with over a thousand employers, points to specialists in big data, fintech engineers, AI and machine learning specialists, and software developers as some of the fastest-growing roles in percentage terms. The skills expected to see the greatest increase are AI and big data, followed by networks and cybersecurity, and technological literacy. The report also estimates that 39% of current workers' skills will change or become obsolete between 2025 and 2030.
And what about Brazil?
The Brasscom labor market outlook report, from May 2026, presents a more grounded picture. The base projection is about 33,000 new signed jobs in the sector by December 2026. In 2025, most of the growth in technology professionals occurred outside the CLT, as MEI, PJ, or informal.
Regarding AI, Brasscom claims to see no signs of mass unemployment caused by technology: the effect first appears in tasks, not in positions. In the same survey, companies estimate that 46% of new vacancies will be entry-level, and 54% of the young people surveyed said that the hardest step is getting to the interview. Thus, there is space for those just starting out, but competition is real, and the bottleneck lies in proving experience.
Entry areas that make sense today
There is no single door. Some areas frequently appear in reports and have clear paths for beginners:
- Software Development (web, back-end, mobile): continues to rank among the fastest-growing roles according to the World Economic Forum.
- Data: data analysis is a good start for those who enjoy numbers and later want to move to data science and AI.
- Cloud Computing: ranks first among technical skills prioritized in the Brasscom report.
- Cybersecurity: second on the Brasscom list and one of the fastest-growing skills according to the World Economic Forum.
Choose one to start with and stick with it for a few months. Jumping tracks every week is one of the most common ways to study a lot and progress little.
The foundation that remains necessary
Programming logic comes first. If you understand variables, conditions, loops, and functions, you can read any language more easily and spot when AI suggests something nonsensical.
Next, choose a language and dive deep into it. Python remains strong in data and AI, and TypeScript became the most used language on GitHub in August 2025, according to Octoverse. Any of the two is a good starting point, as long as you complete projects with it.
Data concepts are helpful in almost any area: basic SQL, spreadsheets, and reading graphs already open many doors. And English appears as the fourth technical priority in the Brasscom report. Most documentation, forums, and error messages are in English, so being able to read well makes a difference from day one.
How to use AI for studying without skipping learning
In the 2026 Stack Overflow survey, 79% of respondents expressed a desire to develop skills in AI. The tool is very helpful for studying, but it can become a crutch. Some practices that work:
- Try to solve it yourself first. Only then ask for a hint, and not for the ready answer.
- Ask for line-by-line explanations of code that you don’t understand.
- Use AI to review your code and suggest tests, and then run the tests yourself.
- Request exercises at your level on a specific topic, like "loops in Python for beginners."
- Never paste code that you cannot explain. If you can't explain it, you haven't learned it yet.
A simple test: close the AI and try to rewrite the exercise from scratch the next day. If you get stuck, go back to the concept before moving on.
Portfolio: show, don’t just tell
If the biggest challenge for young people is getting to the interview, then the portfolio is what helps you get past that stage. Three or four well-done projects are worth more than twenty copied tutorials.
Good projects for beginners solve a concrete problem: a personal expense tracker, a dashboard with public data from IBGE, a simple calendar API. Publish on GitHub with a clear README explaining what the project does, how to run it, and what you learned. If you used AI, mention where it helped and what you adjusted. This shows discernment, which is exactly what companies want to see.
Community and first contributions
Studying alone can be tiring and hide your mistakes. Participate in communities, study groups, and local or online events. Ask questions, answer doubts from those behind you, and request reviews of your code.
Open source is also a gateway. The Octoverse recorded 255,000 people making their first contribution in March 2025, a monthly record for the platform, and mentions repositories created solely to help those wanting to submit their first pull request. According to the same report, Brazil ranks third in the world for the number of open source contributors.
First steps for the coming weeks
- Choose an area and a language.
- Set a fixed study schedule, even if brief, every day.
- Complete a small project from start to finish and publish it on GitHub.
- Read a section of documentation in English each week.
- Join a community and ask at least one question or provide one answer.
There is no guarantee of a position or a set timeline. What the data shows is that the market is looking for people with a solid foundation, who use AI with critical thinking, and who can prove what they know.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is AI going to eliminate entry-level positions?
The consulted reports do not indicate that. Brasscom states that AI first changes tasks, and the companies it heard expect that 46% of the new positions will be entry-level.
Do I need a degree to get started?
College and technical courses help, and many people graduate in technology every year in Brazil. However, a strong portfolio and technical foundation weigh heavily when showing what you can do.
Can I use AI from day one of my studies?
You can, as long as it's for understanding and not for copying. Use it as a tutor that explains and reviews, and always try to solve it first.
Which language should I learn first?
Python and TypeScript are good choices, depending on the area. More important than the language is completing projects with it.
Next steps
Choose today the area that suits you best and define the first project you will publish on GitHub in the coming weeks. If you want to study with an organized path, check out the Hcode course platform.
Sources
The Future of Jobs Report 2025, World Economic Forum, January 7, 2025.
The results of the 2026 Developer Survey are here!, Stack Overflow, October 6, 2026.
Octoverse: A new developer joins GitHub every second as AI leads TypeScript to #1, GitHub, October 28, 2025.
Labor Market Outlook Report of the TIC Macrossector, Brasscom, May 2026.