growth

2026 marks the end of growth for years

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A year ago, ask for a pay rise It had a certain linear logic: more experience, seniority and a higher job category were equivalent to having access to a higher salary range. The salary comparison guide for the technology sector that Manfred published in 2025 With five large technology companies, it offered a fairly predictable structure, where junior, mid and senior employees followed an upward and uniform trend between companies. Moving up a category guaranteed, almost automatically, that the payroll also improved. However, the 2026 update From that same study it comes with data from more companies, greater detail in the data and a very different reading of the technological labor market today: salary bands are expanding, categories are multiplying and the gap between what one company or another pays for the same profile is widening. This year, the size and type of the company you work for matters more than the category and seniority of the employee. Cycle change: from rises to stagnation. One of the most striking changes that emerge from the data provided in the 2026 study Manfred’s view is that some of the participating companies practically copy the previous year’s salary structure. Cabify maintains its salary ranges in line with those of the previous comparison, with levels ranging from 27,000 euros at entry level L1 for the most junior, to 138,000 euros at L6 for senior employees with positions of responsibility. For its part, the corporate health platform Alan has also offered data to February 2026 date. Its thirteen-level salary structure allows it to achieve small progressive rises in place of large salary jumps with an entry base that has changed little in the last year, but in which it is easier to advance since they are smaller sections. For example, a level A0 (internship) starts with a salary of between 35,000 and 41,000 euros and a Junior (C0) receives a base salary of between 65,000 and 76,000 euros plus company shares. A senior employee (D) is in a range of between 79,000 and 91,000 euros plus a supplement in shares. The highest levels such as Principal (I) remain between 160,000 and 203,000 euros. In this sense, the health company continues to pay well above the Spanish market average, and that position has not changed one bit compared to 2025. AI moves the market…and salaries. Although Cabify and Alan remain the same, Factorial goes in the opposite direction and makes the most relevant change in the entire comparison. In 2026, the company has renamed all of its engineering roles by adding “AI” to the job title: Junior AI Engineer, AI Engineer, Senior AI Engineer. It is the first Spanish company to make this move and it is not just a change for posture, it will also be associated with a salary increase in those stripes. For example, a Staff AI Engineer now charges between 82,300 and 106,950 euros in total gross compensation, compared to between 86,000 and 98,000 euros the previous year. For the Distinguished AI Engineer category it rises from 180,000 to 198,000 euros, now equal to the VP of Engineering. This cape represents a declaration of intentions from Factorial, in which grow as a specialist In AI you have the same salary ceiling as managing teams. More companies, more context. The main difference between the 2025 study and that of 2026 is that in the previous edition five technology companies were analyzed, but in 2026 their number doubles, incorporating Buffer, Revolut, Datadog, Amazon, New Relic and JOIN to the database. This incorporation radically changes how the technological labor market is read, because the salary differences between the extremes are now much larger than in 2025. That is, salaries do not change, but rather the analysis data is expanded, making it closer to reality. JOIN, the recruitment platform, has shared its salary ranges with Manfred. So it becomes a new useful reference for the current market. A Senior Engineer on this platform earns between 67,000 and 85,000 euros in base salary. At the other extreme, Datadog places its Senior SWE with an average of 135,000 euros in annual compensation, and Buffer makes public salaries starting at the L3 level with an entry floor for Spain of 129,000 euros. The company weighs more than the experience. In 2025, moving up from junior to senior almost automatically implied a relevant salary jump, and that logic was consistent between companies. The 2026 study dilutes that pattern. A mid profile can range from 39,000 euros in the lower part of Factorial to more than 80,000 euros in Glovo (its L3 charges 82,800 euros). For senior profiles the dispersion is even greater: from 60,000 euros in the low band of Cabify to 135,000 euros on average in Datadog, with salaries at two speeds that AI only amplifies. The practical result is that career progression no longer guarantees the same salary jump that it guaranteed in 2025. As indicated in the report 11th Adecco Salary Monitorchanging companies (to a multinational) has more impact than moving up within it. For a Senior profile, the difference between work in a Spanish company and in a multinational with a presence in Spain it can exceed 50,000 euros annually. More salary transparency imposed by Europe. Behind the new data of this comparison there is an important change that has not gone unnoticed by Manfred experts: the European Salary Transparency Directive (2023/970)which forces companies in Spain to offer salary transparency publishing the salary ranges of their profiles to avoid discrimination, putting end to salary secrecy. Meanwhile, the Spanish tech ecosystem continues to operate with little salary transparency. According to the report Labor Market Guide 2026 prepared by Hays, the IT sector will see salary increases of 6% in 2026 in Spain, but this average hides the same story as Manfred’s study: the increases are not uniform, and this salary increase will be more noticeable depending on the type of company and the relationship of the position with the development of AI. In Xataka | Working … Read more

“Growth without jobs is the new normal”

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Generation Z has had a incorporation into the labor market really bumpy. Their last years of training and internships were marked by the isolation caused by the pandemic and, when it already seemed that they were going to be able to return to their first jobs normally, the adoption of AI has put them on the tightrope again. According to a new report from Goldman Sachs has had access FortuneGeneration Z is at a strange crossroads of economic prosperity for companies and unemployment for them. USA: the canary in the mine. The American labor market is experiencing a profound change which especially affects young people of generation Z, who are looking for their first job in an increasingly complicated environment. It is no coincidence that the first symptoms of impact of AI in the workplace arise in the US since it is the country with greater implementation of AI with 1.2 million companies that are already using AI in some of their processes. Its effects are the canary in the mine for the rest of the economies. In this context, US companies are already They don’t offer as many opportunities. jobs for newly graduated employees as before, and analysts warn that this “jobless growth” scenario will be the new normal for years to come. Soaring economy, stagnant jobs. At this moment, the Stanford research show that generation Z has 13% more difficulty accessing certain jobs, even when the economy continues to grow in terms of Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Goldman Sachs experts David Mericle and Pierfrancesco Mei emphasize that this economic growth reflected by GDP does not translate into more jobs, especially for young people who start their professional career who are seeing how AI has taken on tasks that until now were part of your job learning process. That is, companies earn more, with less staff. The perfect storm for generation Z. According to report data ‘2025-2026 Hiring Benchmark Report‘ prepared by Criteria, human resources managers agree that 92% of young people from generation Z are not prepared for the current demands of the labor market. Although these young people are skilled in using technology and digital tools, companies demand highly qualified and experienced professionals. Something they have not yet had the time (or opportunity) to acquire. On the other hand, automation and mass adoption of artificial intelligence are causing “the modest employment growth along with the strong GDP growth observed recently is likely to normalize to some extent in the coming years.” This diagnosis implies that the majority of new jobs that emerge will be closely linked to high-level technological profiles, while opportunities for young people without experience continue to decline. Productivity and employment have let go of each other’s hands. According to the authors of the Goldman Sachs study, the economic boost to the US GDP is supported above all by the productivity that artificial intelligence is already beginning to provide. However, the new job creation data They are not on the same ascending line. The information They show that in almost all sectors (less in health), job creation is “weak, null or negative”, with managers opting to automate tasks and reduce labor costs permanently. Generation Z in a delicate situation. The conclusion of the Goldman Sachs analysts is clear: “History also suggests that the full consequences of AI for the labor market may not be evident until a recession hits,” at which point the generation Z would be the most vulnerable to any financial shock. Given that, although it is true that the data confirms that there are not large rounds of layoffs (at least not as many like in 2023), No new vacancies are opening either.. The result is a static labor market, especially for those seeking their first job. Youth employment on the rise. Youth employment is already accustomed to be a problem for most economies in the world. The US AI’s canary-in-the-mine figures show that the youth unemployment rate is increasing, especially in the technology sector. Veteran Goldman Sachs analyst Joseph Briggs stressed on the podcast Exchangesthat more than 3% of young people between 20 and 30 years old have lost their jobs in technology since the beginning of the year, and the big layoffs made by companies such as Microsoft, Google and Meta directly affect this generational group. Are replaced by other engineers with more experience. In Xataka | Amazon’s CEO has put his cards on the table: “We expect AI to reduce our total workforce in the coming years” Image | Unsplash (Vitaly Gariev)

We have been talking about the ‘Miracle Inditex’ for years to explain its growth. That phenomenon is coming to an end

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Inditex has just confirmed what many feared: it is no longer the unstoppable growth machine we knew and faces a more mature stage, without the double digit that until very recently was the custom. Why is it important. The first quarter marks a turning point in the history of the Galician giant. Sales grow just 1.5% compared to 7.1% of the previous year, and the benefit stagnates at 0.8%. They are figures of any European textile company, not the empire that used to other numbers. In figures. The numbers are devastating: 8,274 million in sales … … When analysts expected 8,380 million. Is The weakest growth since 2018excluding pandemia. The stock market does not forgive: the shares collapse more than 4% and touch the 46 euros in intradic minimums. The context. Three factors explain this unexpected normalization. The strong euro devours international sales with an impact of 3% that the company did not know how to foresee. Torrential rains in Spain (15% of global sales) have stopped spring clothes purchases. Operating costs grow above income for the first time in years. Between the lines. The data of the balance They show something more worrying: Inditex is losing efficiency. Stocks rise 6.3% when the company is proud to maintain Stocks minima. The net financial position falls by 7.3%. They are symptoms of a company that can no longer control all variables as well as before. Now it remains to see if it is something temporary or goes further. Yes, but. The second quarter offers a respite: sales are growing 6% between May and June. Even so, it is half of the 12% registered a year ago in the same period. The improvement exists, but it is still that of a normal company, not that of a phenomenon as it was so far. The latest. The Jose Arnau exitvice president and right hand of Amancio Ortega for 24 years, symbolizes the end of an era. Your substitute, Roberto Cibeirainherits a prosperous but mortal company. The transformation is complete: Inditex has gone from being a business unicorn to a solid, but predictable multinational. The miracle is over and gives way to the era of maturity. Outstanding image | Inditex In Xataka | Amancio Ortega: the billionaire who lives as one more neighbor (except for private jets and superyates)

Starlink’s growth is so brutal that Spacex is one year after overcoming NASA’s annual budget

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Elon Musk became the richest man in the world thanks to Tesla, but his new golden egg chicken It’s called Starlink. The tycoon has given credibility to something that It had been commenting Since the White House announced NASA’s historic cuts: Spacex’s income is one year after overcoming the annual budget of the planet’s largest space agency. More money than NASA. Elon Musk He just put the data On the table: “Spacex’s income for its commercial activities in space will exceed NASA’s total budget next year.” Spacex is a private company controlled by Musk itself, so it is not obliged to publicly present its results. However, we now know that it plans to enter 15.5 billion dollars in 2025. If approved in Congress, NASA’s annual budget for 2026 will be 18.8 billion dollars, 24% less than the previous year. The whole mountain is Starlink. Spacex receives NASA money to transport astronauts to the International Space Station or develop space programs such as the lunar Starship, but in 2025, that transaction has been “only” 1.1 billion dollars. Most of what Spacex earns comes from Starlink, although the amount of NASA contracts will rise to 1,747 million dollars in 2026, adding the Moon To Mars program. Starlink has more than 5 million customers, a figure that has been duplicating from year to year. The bulk of the business are residential customers, but satellite Internet service has been diversifying with agreements in the maritime sector (mercantile vessels and cruises), the aviation sector (Chárter operators and commercial airlines), the operators (Direct-to-Cell) and the government sector (especially The Starshield constellation of the number). The perpetual movement machine. Starlink’s success would not be possible without Spacex’s launching capacitywhich continues to be beating reuse records with its Falcon 9. The company celebrated its 500 mission last night. The propeller that has taken and landed the most times has done it 28 times, 17 of them to put Starlink satellites in orbit. The integration of the company is totally vertical. Spacex manufactures rockets, satellites and terminals. And innovation is constant. At the end of May, a Falcon 9 deployed 29 Starlink v2 mini optimized satellites225 kg lighter than previous versions and with a bandwidth of 96 Gbps. How much Spacex is worth. With more than 7,000 active satellites in orbit, an incomparable number of any other constellation, Starlink has triggered the assessment of Spacex at stratospheric levels. The most recent valuation is 350,000 million dollars, which makes it the company not quoted in the largest stock market in the United States. Taking into account that Spacex Starlink’s benefits reinvested on the Starship programIt is worth asking who will lead the space exploration of the United States in the coming years, if NASA or Elon Musk’s company. Image | Spacex In Xataka | Spacex has launched 8,000 Starlink satellites in five years, but they are not enough. And we are beginning to understand why

The US strategy before China’s unstoppable naval growth has an unexpected protagonist: Japan

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The United States has been lagging behind in a field that previously dominated with iron fist. Its Marina fleet (sub) has been reduced to the same time as its budget. While China, Russia or even North Korea have been developing A new type of “war” Under the sea giving special importance to the “nuclear” theme in the UUV, Washington was still paralyzed. He Arctic case It is another perfect example. Perhaps for this reason, the approach has turned radically: Japan. Japan as an example. Before the growing Maritime Power of China And the difficulties facing the naval industry of the United States, Congress is evaluating the possibility of Adopt the Japanese model of constant production of submarines. Unlike the American system, where the amount of built vessels varies annually according to the budget, Japan (next to South Korea) has maintained for decades a production rate of A submarine per yearan approach that has provided stability to its naval industry and cost efficiency. The Naval Congress Specialist, Ronald O’Rourke, presented this model at a hearing of the Subcommittee for the Projection of Forces and Maritime Power of the House of Representatives, arguing that the Japanese strategy allows to maintain an constant acquisition rate Without affecting the total size of the fleet. Instead of increasing production, Japan manages the number of submarines in service through the extension of its useful life. The success of the Japanese model. To understand the formula we must go back in time. For decades, Japan has followed this strategy for protect your maritime interestsespecially in the soybeans, Tsugu and Tsushima, key routes where Russian and Chinese ships travel. Initially, its fleet consisted of 16 operational submarines and two training, but in 2010 it extended its objective to 22 submarines without increasing productionsimply prolonging your service time from 16 to 22 years. There is another key: the Japanese system allows Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Kawasaki Heavy Industries alternate the manufacture of submarineswhich avoids fluctuations in the workload of the shipyards and guarantees the maintenance of a highly specialized workforce. This strategy has caused the Japanese naval industry to be efficient, competitive and adaptable to changes in defense needs without generating extra costs or logistic problems. In front of the US decline. On the other sidewalk we have Washington. While Japan maintains its stability in naval production, the United States Navy faces A worrying scenario. The construction of your ships has become increasingly expensive and slowand the data corroborates it, since the total cost of the 46 ships currently under construction was tripled in a single year, from 3.4 billion to 10.4 billion dollars. But there is more. The aircraft carriers, which used to take 8 years to build, now They require 11 years. Here, China is advancing on the right too, As we explain. The attack submarines, whose construction took six years in the 2000s, now take nine. Even the Navy faces the shortage of personnel, both in the shipyards and in the crews, which further aggravates delays. All challenges that make the option of adopting the Japanese approach or that of South Korea, two of the world’s largest naval builders, win traction in Washington, especially when the number of US attack submarines is on the way to decrease in the coming yearswhich could affect the balance of power in the Pacific. Japan as a strategic complement. All this leads us to the proposal of Congress. In addition, the strengthening of the Japanese underwater fleet not only reinforces Tokyo’s defense, but also benefits the United States By having a better prepared ally in the region. O’Rourke pointed out that if Japan decided to expand its fleet to 30 submarines, it could do it maintaining its current production rate and extending the useful life of their vessels at 30 years. The recent delivery of RAIGEI Submarineof the Taigei class, by Kawasaki Heavy Industries to the Japan Ministry of Defense, it is a sample of the efficiency of the system we are talking about. Mitsubishi did the same with him Jingei submarinereflecting a constant production scheme that contrasts with the problems of the American naval industry. The challenge in an uncertain political context. While the Japanese model offers clear solutions, its implementation in the United States is not so simple. The main reason? The American system depends on annual budget negotiationswhat generates fluctuations in naval production and hinders long -term planning. In addition, political and economic uncertainty, including possible commercial restrictions and Threat of new tariffs On the part of the Trump administration, they could further complicate any attempt to stabilize the industry. Thus, the things already measure that competition with China in the maritime field intensifies, the US Congress is forced to reconsider its naval construction strategy. Adopting the Japanese model could represent a viable solution to improve efficiency, reduce costs and ensure that the Navy keeps its position on the global stage. A complicated equation that would require deep structural changes In the way in which the country finances and manages its industry, a challenge that is yet to be resolved. Image | Tom Dennison In Xataka | The US Navy faces an unprecedented threat: China, Russia and North Korea are developing a new type of underwater war In Xataka | Eight Rompehielos have turned Russia into the power of the Arctic. Your secret: Nuclear force to operate all year

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