As AI grows, so do the perils of it, and in yet another case Oracle's total workforce has been cut by 13% in fiscal 2026. Now this might seem like a small percentage, but it also translates to 21,000 employees. The cloud computing giant has a few reasons for it: the continued restructuring of its business and also partly the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) throughout its operations.
The company had registered a total workforce of 141,000 as of May 31, 2026, in contrast to the previous figure of 162,000, which was recorded in the same time period in its last fiscal, as per the annual report released by the cloud computing giant on Monday.
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The company has undertaken $1.84 billion in severance payments and has borne other costs relating to exits and restructuring of the company in its fiscal year 2026, which is a staggering hike from what the cloud computing giant had spent in its previous fiscal year, which was to the tune of $374 million, the report suggests.
In its filing, Oracle attributed the staffing changes to a range of reasons, such as leadership reshuffles, product strategy adjustments, performance-based decisions, acquisitions, and broader business realignments. The reduced employee count follows reports from earlier this year that indicated the company had cut thousands of jobs as part of its ongoing restructuring efforts.
Is This Becoming a Trend?
Job loss due to growth and use of AI across various operations in companies, specifically tech giants, has now become a plague that is being overlooked. So far this year, 196 tech companies have followed the same suit, and more than 119,800 employees have lost their jobs due to its adoption, according to a website that tracks industry-wide job cuts, Layoffs. FYI.
These layoffs by Oracle don't seem to be like a coincidence either, as the company has gone ahead in partnership with AI giants like OpenAI and Meta and has signed massive data centre deals to rise up in competition against other giants following the same suit, like Amazon and Microsoft.
Why Is Oracle's Case Different?
Unlike several of its Big Tech peers that can comfortably finance massive investments through strong cash generation, Oracle has taken a different route. The company has been relying on a combination of cash burn and fresh borrowing to support its spending plans. Investor sentiment has also remained cautious, with Oracle's stock declining roughly 10 per cent so far this year.
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Earlier this month, Oracle said it expects to spend around $70 billion in net capital expenditure during the current fiscal year. To back that ambitious investment push, the company plans to raise an additional $40 billion through debt and equity financing, a figure that includes the previously announced $20 billion share offering.