23.06.2026 10:51
US-based technology giant Oracle has laid off 21,000 employees, equivalent to 13 percent of its workforce, over the past year as part of its artificial intelligence strategies and restructuring plans. The company's severance costs have reached $1.84 billion, while the global employment loss caused by AI in the technology sector continues to deepen.
The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence in the global technology sector is fundamentally changing how companies operate, while also causing a seismic shift in the job market. Oracle, a US-based software giant restructuring its business processes around AI technologies, is passing the cost of this transformation onto its employees.
13% OF THE WORKFORCE LET GO
The company's latest activity report reveals the massive scale of the layoffs. According to the report, as of May 31, 2026, Oracle's full-time employee count dropped from 162,000 in the same period last year to 141,000. The resulting 21,000 job cuts represent approximately 13% of the giant company's total workforce.
While the report cites management changes, product transitions, acquisitions, and strategic alignments as reasons, the primary emphasis is on artificial intelligence. It states that integrating AI technologies into operational processes has led to workforce reductions and that this contraction trend may continue in the future.
SEVERANCE COSTS SURGE TO $1.84 BILLION
The wave of large-scale layoffs has also caused significant fluctuations in Oracle's financial statements. The company's efforts to restructure business processes have created a substantial cost item. Severance payments and other restructuring expenses, recorded at $374 million in May 2025, have risen to a record $1.84 billion in the last fiscal year.
WARNING OF PRODUCTIVITY LOSS AND DISRUPTION
Company management has warned that these sweeping organizational changes come with certain risks. It notes that restructuring efforts may cause disruptions in business processes, and a shortage of skilled labor in certain roles could lead to productivity losses, potentially negatively impacting company earnings in the short term.
CONCERN GROWS IN THE GLOBAL TECH SECTOR
What is happening at Oracle is just one part of a larger picture in the tech world. Major technology companies, especially in the US, are allocating hundreds of billions of dollars to build data centers and AI infrastructure. However, to finance these massive budgets, companies are cutting one of their biggest expenses: labor costs.
According to current data from Layoffs.fyi, which closely tracks layoffs in the technology sector, global job cuts in this sector alone have exceeded 121,000 this year. The destruction caused by the rise of AI in the labor market is deepening concerns about future employment models.