U.S. employment in five fields that were nonexistent or barely recognizable a generation ago (jobs in thousands)
Every line on this chart represents an industry that didn't exist, or barely existed, a generation ago. Software developers, cybersecurity professionals, mobile app developers, data scientists, and solar energy workers now account for over 4.4 million U.S. jobs. The App Store launched in 2008. "Data scientist" wasn't a recognized job title until 2012. The term "cybersecurity" barely appeared in job postings before 2000. Nobody predicted these fields. The jobs being displaced are always visible. The jobs being created are not yet named.
Sources: BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook (2024-2034 projections); BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics; ISC2 Cybersecurity Workforce Study (2023-2025); IREC National Solar Jobs Census (2024); Evans Data Corporation / Statista (developer population); BioSpace / BLS (data scientist employment, Sep 2025). App developer estimates based on BLS web developer category and industry analyses.