Confidence among Irish startup founders continues to grow, with more than three quarters (77%) planning to expand their workforce over the coming years, compared to 60% last year, a new report from business group Ibec has found.
According to the annual Ibec Founders Report, more than four fifths (81%) of founders currently rate the business environment positively, compared to 77% at the time of the last survey in September 2025.
In addition, two thirds (67%) are optimistic about their prospects over the next six months.
‘Punching above its weight’
“Ireland continues to punch above its weight as a global startup hub,” commented Sharon Higgins, Ibec executive director of Membership & Sectors. “Over 554,000 people are employed by state-backed agency clients, and more than €7 billion has been raised by indigenous startups in the past five years – clear indicators of the sector’s scale and impact.
“Since conducting this research previously in September, we are seeing a remarkable level of resilience, with both the outlook and hiring plans in a very positive place despite global instability, rising costs, and the rapid pace of technological change.”
At the same time, despite the broadly positive outlook, founders continue to face several structural challenges. Attracting and retaining talent remains the most significant issue, cited by 61% of respondents, followed by regulatory compliance (47%) and access to capital (39%).
The report also highlights the growing adoption of artificial intelligence across Irish startups, with the vast majority of founders investing in AI to improve productivity.
“While issues persist for founders around access to funding and managing regulatory compliance, talent is clearly central to growth and viability,” Higgins added.
“As with all businesses, we need to support founders to unlock a resilient, agile labour pool capable of seamlessly shifting from disrupted roles into newly created market opportunities brought about by AI.”
Workforce development
She added that workforce development will be critical as AI reshapes the labour market and called for greater use of Ireland’s National Training Fund, which currently holds a surplus of approximately €2 billion.
“This surplus must now be strategically deployed to incentivise lifelong learning and business-led upskilling,” she said. “If the government cannot fully utilise the NTF to upskill the workforce for these rapid changes – or lacks the capacity to deploy these resources effectively – it should return the funds to businesses so employers can invest directly in targeted training.” Read more here.
