"Last year, U.S. employers explicitly blamed AI for 55,000 of the 1.17 million job cuts, according to Challenger, Gray & Christmas. That's fewer than 5% of layoffs. AI is not yet the bête noire nor the magic elixir that people have made it out to be. (Forgive the mixed metaphors there; proof of a human at the helm.) In August, MIT released a study that found 95% of generative AI pilots fail to generate meaningful return."
"The prospect of AI can spark both fear and fascination. In either case, talking about it externally and internally is a great way to get people motivated to learn about it. The productivity boost, especially in areas like coding, can be significant. Tying it to job cuts is code for telling everyone to learn it. It can excite investors. UPS stock jumped 8% the day that CEO Carol Tomé announced 48,000 jobs had been cut."
U.S. job growth slowed sharply in 2025, adding 584,000 jobs versus 2 million in 2024; excluding health care and social assistance, the U.S. lost jobs. Some leaders prefer framing potential job cuts as driven by AI rather than falling demand because it appears forward-looking. Employers attributed AI to 55,000 of 1.17 million job cuts last year, under 5% of layoffs. An MIT study found 95% of generative AI pilots fail to generate meaningful return. Predictions about AI range from eliminating knowledge-work roles to greatly boosting productivity, and public companies often use layoffs in strategic shifts that can please investors.
Read at Fortune
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