The tech sector is feeling the ripple effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, which reshaped operations and led to over a million global job losses since 2021, according to TradingPlatforms.
In just the first half of 2026, 156,975 tech roles have been cut, and if this pace continues, the year could close with roughly 290,842 job losses, eclipsing the 245,000 layoffs seen in 2025.
AI is now the dominant driver of technology sector layoffs. A total of 90,065 employees have lost their jobs amid restructuring, automation and organisational changes linked to artificial intelligence, representing 56.2% of all 160,377 technology layoffs recorded worldwide in 2026.
This latest wave of cuts builds on several years of post-pandemic adjustment, during which the global tech workforce shrank by more than a million positions. What started as a correction from pandemic-era hiring booms has now turned into a deeper transformation in how technology companies operate.
Companies are increasingly restructuring departments, adopting AI-driven workflows, and optimising staffing levels to improve efficiency and reduce costs
Four technology companies have surpassed 10,000 AI-related layoffs in 2026. Oracle tops the list with 25,754 job cuts after aggressively restructuring its business around AI, followed by Amazon (17,094), where CEO Andy Jassy has warned that generative AI will ultimately shrink the company’s corporate workforce.
Cognizant has eliminated 15,000 positions while pivoting towards automation, while Meta has cut 10,400 jobs across multiple rounds as it shifts resources from its metaverse projects towards artificial intelligence infrastructure. Software companies are increasingly restructuring around AI workflows. Monday.com has become the latest major SaaS company to reduce headcount, cutting around 600 employees as it streamlines operations.
Earlier in January, Pinterest eliminated 675 roles, nearly 15% of its workforce, to reallocate resources towards strengthening its own AI capabilities. Uber has also continued to reduce its workforce throughout 2026. The company eliminated around 340 roles earlier in the year, and recently announced a further 560 layoffs in July that were explicitly tied to its growing use of artificial intelligence.
The cuts, which primarily affected customer operations teams, reflect Uber’s broader push to automate customer support and internal operations, bringing its total workforce reductions for 2026 to 900. The United States remains the epicentre of AI-related layoffs, accounting for 51,076 of the 90,065 AI-linked job cuts recorded this year.
Australia ranks second, with 4,520 layoffs driven by reductions at logistics software company WiseTech Global (2,000), software giant Atlassian (1,600), telecommunications provider Telstra (650), online design marketplace Envato (200) and HR software company Culture Amp (70).
Europe has recorded 1,367 AI-related technology layoffs so far in 2026. The Netherlands has been the hardest-hit country, accounting for 680 job cuts, almost half of the European total, driven by reductions at online travel company lastminute.com (400) and search software firm Elastic (280). Germany follows with 250 layoffs at AI translation platform DeepL, while the UK has recorded 247 job cuts across consumer technology company Nothing (100), cybersecurity firm Snyk (90) and travel technology provider Travelport (57).
Ireland has seen 140 AI-related layoffs at online gambling affiliate Gambling.com, while Denmark rounds out the list with 50 job cuts at fintech platform Pleo.
‘Artificial intelligence has become the default explanation for workforce reductions this year, with more and more technology companies citing the technology as a justification for laying off employees. Yet, current AI systems remain far from being capable of replacing entire teams or organisations on their own, and many of this year’s layoffs are the result of strategic business decisions rather than a direct consequence of artificial intelligence replacing human workers.
Instead, many businesses are using the AI transition as an opportunity to accelerate cost-cutting, flatten management structures and redirect investment towards AI infrastructure and product development in an effort to remain competitive in a rapidly changing market. So while AI can dramatically improve the speed and efficiency with which work is done, the decision to reduce headcount is still, in most cases, a human one, ’ said Stanislava Savisheva, analyst at TradingPlatforms.
