New York Surpasses San Francisco as Top Tech Talent Hub in U.S.
According to CBRE's latest Scoring Tech Talent report, New York City has surpassed the San Francisco Bay Area as the largest tech talent market in the United States. In 2025, New York had 394,300 tech workers compared to 375,730 in the Bay Area — marking a historic shift for the first time since CBRE began tracking this data over 13 years ago. The rise of artificial intelligence and changes in hiring patterns are key drivers. While San Francisco's traditional tech companies have been cutting jobs, New York’s financial services sector has been actively adding technology and AI workers. This trend is intensifying competition between finance firms and traditional tech employers for top talent. Nationally, U.S. and Canadian AI-related roles increased by 45% in the past year to reach over 750,000. New York’s growing dominance also reflects broader economic shifts as AI work expands into sectors like finance. The report highlights how this competition is influencing real estate decisions — with Manhattan seeing strong leasing activity due to office-centric hiring trends among AI firms.
Topics: AI hiring CBRE report New York vs. San Francisco tech talent