Why remote roles are becoming extinct in 2026?
Comments
apothegm
iainctduncan
I work in tech diligence so I speak to software companies all the time, from startups to $5B transactions. In "normal" companies, remote jobs are still very common. Can't speak to teach giants and their decisions, which rarely have anything to do with actually developing software though
rohansrma
they provide remote everywhere?
keiferski
It's my impression that many of the roles that were previously "remote from anywhere in the world" are being replaced with either 1) a current employee using AI to be more productive or 2) a remote/partially remote job with the requirement to be in the same country/economic zone.
rohansrma
I don't agree much on this. For ex, hiring someone from Nigeria is always cheaper than hiring the same person in US for a US based company.
keiferski
I didn't say it wasn't cheaper, I said it's what I've observed.
It's my impression that companies would rather hire 2-3 locals/non-remote workers and enhance their productivity with AI tools, vs. hiring 15 people from abroad that are in countries they have no presence in.
AI is undercutting a lot of these remote abroad jobs, because those types of tasks are more easily done with AI now.
rohansrma
AI is undercutting so many things/. :)
brudgers
Cheaper only matters when choosing between fungible alternatives.
Or when inadequately capitalized.
rohansrma
not always true! If you get the same requirements fulfilled by other person cost effectively then you will choose them.
brudgers
Those are fungible alternatives.
mindwork
I don't see it.
I think this is a misconception brought by the COVID19 times when remote work went mainstream because of lockdowns. And now there is a big expectation for work to be remote. Just started look for a remote job, I see the same percentage of remote-first or remote-friendly companies as before. Which is a small percent, but not zero.
On the opposite - the hybrid work became more normalized this days.
rohansrma
Yes that's true. But after COVID, a lot of new remote only companies started which now shifted to hybrid or on-site.
starwxchen1
AI can handle most remote works. I think company are tend to hire people who can perform physical works now.
rohansrma
what's physical work in computer science?
atleastoptimal
The more a role is able to be remote, the more it can be easily automated with AI, thus AI is eating remote roles.
rohansrma
not always true. Which roles are you talking about?
atleastoptimal
If a role is remote, all its inputs and outputs have to be what can be done through a computer, which AI has an advantage compared to anything which requires in-person interaction.
rohansrma
is it. I've worked remotely before and never done this/.
joywong
Had the same experience. I spent about half a year looking for a remote role before joining my current company and couldn’t land one. My guess is AI is a big factor: the work that can be done remotely is mostly the work AI is making more efficient, they only need to spend bulk of dollars per month to "employ" a group of AI agents, so there are fewer openings and far more applicants per role.
rohansrma
I worked directly for a AI native company and I think engineering roles were only compromised a bit and not the marketing roles. So, far I've applied to 75 jobs in two months and I got rejections just because of location issues.
But Ik before 2026, there were a lot of roles in the marketing side available remotely. I rejected so many offers. But currently, most companies shifted to on-site inside of remote. Idt AI is the reason.
sdevonoes
As a software engineer in western Europe: I still see plenty of (100%) remote roles available. When I say plenty I mean that there’s enough for me to pick up one and try my luck.
But also I usually work for companies that have a branch in the country I live in
rohansrma
I mentioned this in one of my comments. Europe and America have a plenty of remote roles. But not remote everywhere*
ChrisShips
You could check out the Jobs module or remote work platforms.
rohansrma
doesn't works. I tried them.
caranlharris
I think remote roles are still out there, I see them. Sometimes the roles you may be looking for might have different titles. You might do a google search and see if some titles are changed or adjusted. Good luck with your search.
rohansrma
Thank you for the luck!
Unluckily the remote roles are present at the location I've been searching for.
caranlharris
Well, it will work out for you if it's meant for you. Stay positive and maybe be open to similar roles at other organizations.
MichaelWalden
lot of jobs... depends who you are
the challange is often you need to "Know someone" I got my last job tthough friends
rohansrma
I'm bad at making friends tbh!
shahzad-89
It’s not just you. Remote jobs aren’t dead, but work from anywhere roles have become much rarer.
rohansrma
I see only usa and uk remote roles these days.
anovikov
OBBBA act made hiring non-US people for dev role virtually impossible from tax standpoint. Plus there are too many "overemployment" scammers and employers woke up to that.
rohansrma
that's the main reason for usa. but working at us startups is still not affected much ig. however you need a physical presence.
btw, usa OBBBA act, impacted UK remote jobs as well.
shahzad-89
Yes, you're right. Also with the rise of AI, people are using AI tools to solve small problems and build projects on their own rather than hiring someone to do the work for them.
rohansrma
Agreed. But I'm mostly referring to seeded startups or organizations.
diwash007
AI
rohansrma
what AI?
There are also a lot of issues currently with AI being used for fraud, impersonation, and more in remote hiring.