In just the first three months of 2026, more than 80,000 people have lost their jobs across the global tech industry with almost 50% of them directly attributed to artificial intelligence (AI), reveals a new report by Trading Platforms.
As companies struggle to keep pace with post-pandemic economic challenges, the rise of artificial intelligence is threatening not just entry-level jobs, but also senior leadership and top managerial roles.
According to an aggregated report from Trading Platform, as many as 80,117 jobs have been laid off in the tech sector from January to March 2026 with Oracle, Amazon, Block and Meta contributing the most. U.S. accounted for the maximum layoff with 61,650 followed by Australia at 4450 and India at 2040.
Over 47% of the job lay offs have been attributed to AI and as per the report, if this pace continues, 2026 could close with roughly 301,471 job losses, much higher than the 2025 figures of 245,000.
“AI has emerged as a key driver of this shift. By early April 2026, nearly half of all global layoffs have been linked to AI-driven restructuring, reflecting a stark departure from previous mass layoff waves. The impact is no longer limited to support or operational roles; engineering teams, senior leadership, and even entire product divisions are being reorganized around the expectation that AI can take on an increasing share of work,” read an excerpt from the report by Trading Platform.
However, the report also mentions that AI related firings aren’t all about human jobs getting replaced with automation, in several cases, very few companies had fully operational AI systems capable of taking over significant workloads.
“Many layoffs appear to be pre-emptive cost-cutting measures to fund AI infrastructure rather than the direct result of automation. This suggests that some AI-related job losses may eventually be offset by rehiring, often in lower-wage regions, once implementation catches up with expectations,” read the report.
The layoffs are spread across key sectors like cloud computing, software services, and e-commerce. These areas had grown quickly during the pandemic, and are now seeing corrections as demand stabilizes and companies focus on efficiency.
Even with these job cuts, hiring has not stopped completely. There is still demand for skilled workers, especially those with experience in AI and machine learning. This suggests that while some roles are disappearing, new kinds of jobs are also emerging. For many workers, however, the situation remains uncertain as the industry continues to adjust to a new phase of growth driven by technology and automation.
Also Read: “I Helped AI Learn My Work”: Ex Oracle Employees on the Layoff They Never Saw Coming
