IBM has reportedly laid off around 8,000 employees, primarily in its Human Resources (HR) department, as part of its effort to integrate artificial intelligence (AI) into its operations. The tech giant replaced approximately 200 HR roles with AI agents capable of handling tasks such as responding to employee queries, processing paperwork, and organizing HR data. These AI agents require minimal human supervision and aim to boost efficiency while reducing costs.
Despite the layoffs, IBM CEO Arvind Krishna stated that the company’s overall headcount has increased as savings from automation are redirected into other areas like software development, marketing, and sales. Krishna emphasized that IBM is not just cutting jobs but modernizing its workforce to focus on roles requiring human intelligence, such as creativity, strategic thinking, and people management.
IBM’s Chief Human Resources Officer, Nickle LaMoreaux, noted that while AI will take over repetitive tasks, it is not expected to fully replace most jobs. Instead, AI will free up employees to focus on areas needing human judgment and decision-making. The company is also promoting its AI capabilities to external clients, having unveiled new tools at its annual Think conference to help businesses build and deploy their own AI agents.
This move mirrors a broader industry trend, with companies like Duolingo and Shopify also adopting AI and automation. Shopify’s CEO Tobias Lütke has introduced policies requiring teams to justify new hires by demonstrating that AI cannot perform the job.
