Artificial intelligence made an impact on the job market in 2025.
AFROTECH™ has reported various layoffs across a handful of companies this year, with AI being a contributing factor. Among them is Microsoft, which laid off 15,000 workers, about 17% of its workforce, while continuing to invest $80 billion in AI.
“We continue to implement organisational changes necessary to best position the company for success in a dynamic marketplace,” a Microsoft spokesperson told BBC in July when a 9,000 reduction in the tech company’s workforce was announced.
HP also shared that it intends to lay off between 4,000 and 6,000 employees by 2028 as it integrates AI into its operations, per CNN. As AFROTECH™ stated, it intends to lay off employees in product development, internal operations, and customer support.
According to CNN, HP CEO Enrique Lores said, “This initiative will create $1 billion in gross run rate savings over three years.”
AI can already replace $1.2 trillion in wages across sectors such as administrative, financial, and professional services, which amounts to nearly 12% of the workforce, according to a Massachusetts Institute of Technology study. In fact, IBM CEO Arvind Krishna said AI chatbots have replaced hundreds of its human resources workers, and Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff echoed similar sentiments, stating AI agents have been replacing its customer support division, per Business Insider.
“What we need to remember is that the world is changing quickly. This generation of AI is the most transformative technology we’ve seen since the internet, and it’s enabling companies to innovate much faster than ever before (in existing market segments and altogether new ones),” Beth Galetti, senior vice president of people experience and technology at Amazon, wrote in a blog post.
In 2025, there have been 48,414 layoffs in the U.S. as a direct result of AI, according to consulting firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas.
“It’s possible with rate cuts and a strong showing in November, companies may make a late season push for employees, but at this point, we do not expect a strong seasonal hiring environment in 2025,” said Challenger in the report.
