The UK’s tech sector is missing out on half its talent

The rapidity of digital change, while key to prosperity, also adds precarity to systems on which we rely.

Just last week, we awoke to news of what is believed to be the biggest crypto hack on record as digital assets, worth more than $6.3bn (£4.7bn), were reportedly taken from Binance by hackers.

And just the week before this, organisations around the world were scrambling to patch two cyber-security flaws in a programming language that powers much of the internet. The Finnish government, Edinburgh Council and the BBC were among those taking web pages offline as they rushed to address the problem.

Meanwhile, organisations ranging from the FBI to fashion retailer ASOS have been the victims of cyber-attacks over the past month or so. It seems no-one is immune.

But cyber security is just one part of a bigger story. We are living through a period of extraordinary technological change, particularly as artificial intelligence finds its way into almost every corner of our lives.

These technologies bring with them huge opportunities and the economic stakes are high. It’s little wonder, then, that AI, cyber security and other frontier technologies feature prominently in the Government’s Digital and Technologies Sector Plan.

According to the plan, citing research from PwC, the adoption of emerging technologies has the potential to contribute up to 8.4% to the UK’s real GDP by 2035.[1] The UK’s cyber security industry is already world leading, generating £13.2 billion in revenue across more than 2,000 firms[2], while the number of AI companies has grown by 85% over the past two years to 5,800 with revenues of £23.9 billion.[3]

If we want these industries to thrive, helping to drive future economic growth, stability and security for the UK, we need to ensure they are powered by a skilled workforce. And therein lies the rub.

The sector relies on specialist digital skills and science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) skills, yet employers are struggling to recruit. In 2022, there were approximately 130,000 UK STEM vacancies due to skills shortages.[4]

Reports from the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology found that 35% of organisations surveyed struggle to fill AI roles, while 28% said technical skills gaps were affecting their ability to achieve their business goals.[5] Meanwhile, more than half (57%) of UK businesses had a basic cyber-security skills gap, an increase from last year (49%).[6]

It’s clear that something needs to be done and one way to help close the gap is to look at who is currently missing from this picture – women.

Women remain underrepresented in many technology roles, accounting for just 21% of the UK tech workforce in 2024[7], despite representing approximately 51% of the UK’s workforce. In AI, women make up only 20%[8] of the workforce, a fall of four percentage points since 2020. In cyber security, the figure is just 16%.[9]

At a time when these industries need skilled people to fuel their growth, we cannot afford to overlook such a big pool of potential talent.

To get more women through the door, we need to challenge outdated perceptions of what a career in technology looks like and help women recognise how their existing skills could translate into new roles, while encouraging employers to look beyond recruiting from traditional tech backgrounds.

The UK Government’s TechFirst Women’s programme, run by Plexal, seeks to address this imbalance. Launched just last month, it aims to support 300 women to move into paid technology jobs and is supported by a network of industry and academic partners, including Cardiff University.

Women who participate in the programme receive government-funded skills development, mentoring and career support before being matched with live vacancies for paid jobs. Employers get access to a wider pool of talent through free candidate sourcing and matching. It’s a win-win.

In an increasingly uncertain world, our ability to drive forward new technologies is critical to the UK’s future prosperity and resilience. And that means making the most of all the talent available to us – not just half of it. Opening up technology careers to more women is not a nicety, a question of fairness or a tick-box exercise for diversity and inclusion. It’s an economic imperative, and we ignore it at our peril.

To find out more about the TechFirst Women’s Programme visit techfirstwomen.com

This column appeared in the Western Mail on 30 October 2026 and was written by our Director, Carolyn Pugsley.

[1] Digital and Technologies Sector Plan – GOV.UK quoting PwC (2025) The Wider Economic Impacts of Emerging Technologies in the UK

[2] Digital and Technologies Sector Plan – GOV.UK

[3] Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, Artificial Intelligence Sector Study 2024

[4] Digital and Technologies Sector Plan – GOV.UK quoting Department for Education 2024 – Unit for Future Skills – Jobs and Skills Dashboard 2024

[5] Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, AI Labour Market Survey 2025, published January 2026; research conducted by Gardiner & Theobald.

[6] Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, Cyber security skills in the UK labour market 2026.

[7] Cebr & City of London Corporation, Untapped Digital Talent: the £3bn opportunity, 2026.

[8] Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, AI Labour Market Survey 2025, published January 2026; research conducted by Gardiner & Theobald.

[9] Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, Cyber security skills in the UK labour market 2026.