The opportunity is substantial: digital adoption, automation and data-driven decision-making offer significant productivity gains, while cyber resilience is now fundamental to business survival. But the pace of change continues to outstrip the supply of skills – employers report acute shortages in data scientists, cybersecurity specialists, software developers and cloud professionals, alongside more persistent gaps in everyday digital literacy, from core platforms like Microsoft 365 through to programming and AI-related skills. This overlaps closely with The Creative Sector, where demand for ‘createch’ skills – AI, machine learning and immersive technology – is rising alongside traditional craft skills. Two recent pieces of regional evidence sit behind this page: the Solent AI & Digital Skills Needs Report (February 2026), produced by the Solent Growth Partnership with AI Lab, and the AI Growth Alliance’s AI Leadership and Skills Strategy for Hampshire and the Solent (2026–2029), which the Chamber supported as a founding partner. AI is one part of a much wider sector, though – the core software, cloud, data and cybersecurity skills that underpin day-to-day digital operations across every business warrant focus for further research.
Digital and Technology sit at the heart of the region’s competitiveness, supporting around 83,400 jobs (9.2% of total employment) with strong regional specialisation. The ecosystem spans roughly 7,000 tech-related companies, most of them SMEs, and includes a growing cybersecurity cluster centred around Basingstoke.
Solent Growth Partnership Solent AI & Digital skills Needs report 2026
Download 2026 Report
AIGA AI Leadership and Skills Strategy for Hampshire and the
Download 2026 Report
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