Oracle workforce shrinks 13% in fiscal 2026
Oracle Corp. reduced its headcount by 21,000 employees over the past 12 months, the company disclosed in its annual report. The software and cloud computing giant now employs about 141,000 full-time workers, down from roughly 162,000 a year earlier. CEO Safra Catz cited the company's aggressive investment in artificial intelligence as a primary driver of the restructuring, with AI systems taking over functions previously handled by human workers.
AI replaces roles across multiple departments
The layoffs have affected customer support, database administration, and software quality assurance — areas where Oracle has deployed AI-powered tools that can handle routine tasks autonomously. The company has been investing tens of billions in AI infrastructure, including cloud data centers optimized for AI workloads. Oracle's cloud revenue has grown as enterprises shift to its platform for AI model training.
Broader tech industry trend accelerates
Oracle is not alone. Tech companies have cut over 200,000 jobs in 2026 as AI adoption reshapes the industry. Analysts estimate that AI-related automation could eliminate up to 300,000 tech sector positions globally this year. However, new AI-specialist roles are being created in parallel, with demand for machine learning engineers, data scientists, and AI security experts surging.