Atlassian is cutting 1,600 jobs and replacing its CTO

"Our approach is not 'AI replaces people.' But it would be disingenuous to pretend AI doesn't change the mix of skills we need or the number of roles required in certain areas. It does. This is primarily about adaptation. We are reshaping our skill mix and changing how we work to build for the future."

"Technology creation is 'not output-bound.' Atlassian would employ more engineers in five years, not fewer. They would just be more efficient. [Later contradicted by announcement of 1,600 redundancies, approximately 10% of the company's global workforce, framed as a necessary adaptation to the AI era.]"

"The cuts would allow it to 'self-fund further investment in AI and enterprise sales, while strengthening our financial profile.' More than 900 of the affected roles are in software research and development, with North America bearing the largest share at 40% of cuts, or around 640 people."

In October 2025, Atlassian CEO Mike Cannon-Brookes stated the company would employ more engineers in five years despite AI advancement. Six months later, Atlassian announced 1,600 redundancies representing 10% of its global workforce, framed as necessary adaptation to the AI era. The layoffs occurred amid a sector-wide selloff in enterprise software stocks, termed the 'SaaSpocalypse,' driven by investor concerns that AI agents could render conventional SaaS tools obsolete. Over 900 affected roles were in software research and development. Geographically, North America experienced 40% of cuts, Australia 30%, and India 16%. Cannon-Brookes characterized the restructuring as reshaping skill mix rather than AI replacing people, stating the company would self-fund AI investment and strengthen its financial profile.

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