HP leadership reviews restructuring plans as the company prepares major workforce reductions and expanded AI adoption. Image Source: ChatGPT-5
HP to Lay Off 4,000–6,000 Workers as Company Expands AI Adoption
Key Takeaways: HP Layoffs, AI Adoption, and Workforce Disruption
HP Inc. plans to lay off 4,000–6,000 employees by fiscal 2028 as part of a cost-saving plan tied to AI deployments and internal automation.
The company expects to save $1 billion in annualized gross run rate by shifting investment toward AI-driven product development, customer support, and operational efficiencies.
HP joins a growing list of major tech companies citing AI adoption as a factor in workforce reductions, though experts remain divided on whether AI is the true cause of these cuts.
Experts caution that AI may be overstated as the cause of many layoffs, noting that effective AI replacement of human roles remains complex and uneven.
HP Plans Thousands of Layoffs as It Ramps Up AI Adoption
HP Inc. announced that it will lay off between 4,000 and 6,000 workers by the end of fiscal 2028 as part of a long-term restructuring strategy centered on expanding its use of AI technologies across product development, customer support, and internal operations.
During an earnings call, CEO Enrique Lores said the shift will help reduce structural costs and support HP’s plans to “accelerate product innovation, improve customer satisfaction, and boost productivity.” The company expects the restructuring—driven heavily by automation and digital transformation—to save $1 billion annually once fully implemented.
In its fiscal 2025 earnings report, HP framed the layoffs as part of a broader set of “structural cost-saving initiatives” that include platform simplification, program consolidation, and long-term productivity measures enabled by AI and automation.
Where the Layoffs Will Occur
HP indicated that the job reductions will fall most heavily on:
Product development teams
Internal operations and support functions
Customer support roles
The company did not detail specific geographies or business units but said the changes will roll out gradually through 2028.
Tech Layoffs Tied to AI Adoption Are Becoming More Common
HP’s announcement adds to a growing wave of tech-sector layoffs where executives cite AI efficiency gains, workforce optimization, or “AI-enabled productivity improvements.”
Recent examples include:
Salesforce: 4,000 customer support employees laid off; CEO Marc Benioff said AI meant “I need less heads.”
Amazon: Senators accused the company of attributing “tens of thousands” of dismissals to the adoption of generative AI tools.
Amazon (separate November announcement): 14,000 layoffs to refocus on high-priority initiatives including AI.
Intuit: 1,800 layoffs to recruit more AI-focused roles.
Klarna and Duolingo: Reduced staff counts through AI automation of content and support tasks.
Meta: Plans to lay off 5% of its workforce as it leans more heavily into AI.
According to Challenger, Gray & Christmas, technology companies have announced 141,159 job cuts so far this year—up 17% from the same period last year.
Experts Question Whether AI Is Truly Driving These Layoffs
Despite the industry narrative, some labor and management experts warn that AI may not be the primary force behind these cuts.
Peter Cappelli, a management professor and director of the Center for Human Resources at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, told CNBC that “there’s very little evidence that [AI] cuts jobs anywhere near like the level that we’re talking about.”
He added that replacing human workers with AI systems at scale is “enormously complicated and time-consuming,” and noted that companies may be invoking AI as a convenient justification for broader restructuring.
Analysts at Gartner similarly emphasize that while AI will reshape IT roles, humans will remain essential. The firm estimates that 81% of IT work already involves AI today, and by 2030, nearly all IT tasks will incorporate AI in some way. However, Gartner VP analysts Alicia Mullery and Daryl Plummer stress that 75% of IT workloads will still require human involvement—underscoring that AI is augmenting IT functions rather than fully replacing them.
Recent research from MIT’s Iceberg Index provides a nuanced counterweight to layoff narratives. While current AI systems can technically perform 11.7% of U.S. job tasks, the researchers emphasize that most exposure lies in routine, skill-based functions — not full job replacement. The study shows that AI’s impact will be uneven, distributed across counties and occupations rather than concentrated in tech hubs, and that policy, reskilling, and adoption strategies will ultimately shape workforce disruption.
Long-Term Outlook: Will AI Ultimately Create or Displace More Jobs?
The broader debate about AI’s workforce impact remains unsettled. The World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report 2025 projects that AI will create 78 million more jobs than it eliminates globally by 2030, based on data from 1,000 companies worldwide.
But this transition will likely unfold unevenly, with certain routine support roles experiencing more direct pressure while others evolve or expand.
Economists note that it may take years before the full effects of generative AI, automation, and machine learning become visible across the labor market.
Q&A: HP Layoffs and AI-Driven Workforce Restructuring
Q: How many employees is HP planning to lay off?
A: Between 4,000 and 6,000 workers by the end of fiscal 2028.
Q: Why is HP making these cuts?
A: HP cites cost savings, automation, and increased use of AI to improve innovation, productivity, and operational efficiency.
Q: Which teams will be affected the most?
A: Product development, internal operations, and customer support teams.
Q: Is AI really responsible for these job losses?
A: Some executives say yes, but experts argue that AI is often used as a scapegoat for broader corporate restructuring and cost cutting.
Q: Does AI eliminate more jobs than it creates?
A: According to the World Economic Forum, AI could create 78 million more jobs than it replaces by 2030. The net effect will vary by industry.
What This Means: AI, Layoffs, and Corporate Restructuring
HP’s announcement highlights a larger trend: even when AI is not the sole cause of workforce reductions, it increasingly becomes the public-facing rationale for restructuring. As companies deploy automation tools to streamline operations, roles in support, operations, and customer service are often first in line for transformation.
But experts stress that these shifts are not strictly one-directional. While AI can reduce the need for certain tasks, it also creates new categories of work—particularly in AI development, data operations, automation oversight, and digital service design.
For workers and policymakers, the takeaway is clear: the next phase of AI adoption will be messy, uneven, and industry-specific, requiring renewed focus on reskilling, adaptive workforce policy, and realistic expectations about AI’s true capabilities.
As AI becomes embedded across corporate operations, long-term resilience will depend on ensuring that both businesses and workers are prepared for the transition—not just the technology itself.
The question now is not whether AI will shape the workforce, but how companies choose to balance technological gains with human roles in the years ahead.
Sources
HP Inc. — “HP Inc. Reports Fiscal 2025 Full Year and Fourth Quarter Results”
https://www.hp.com/us-en/newsroom/press-releases/2025/hp-inc-reports-fiscal-2025-full-year-and-fourth-quarter-results.html
Ars Technica — “HP plans to save millions by laying off thousands, ramping up AI use.”
HP plans to save millions by laying off thousands, ramping up AI use - Ars Technica
Fortune — “Microsoft researchers have revealed the 40 jobs most exposed to AI—and even teachers make the list”
https://fortune.com/2025/07/31/microsoft-research-generative-ai-occupational-impact-jobs-most-and-least-likely-to-impact-teaching-office-jobs-college-gen-z-grads/
NBC Bay Area — “Salesforce CEO confirms 4,000 job cuts ‘because I need less heads’ with AI”
https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/salesforce-layoffs-artificial-intelligence/3941975/
Ars Technica — “Amazon blamed AI for layoffs, then hired cheap H1-B workers, senators allege”
https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2025/09/amazon-blamed-ai-for-layoffs-then-hired-cheap-h1-b-workers-senators-allege/
Amazon — “Staying nimble and continuing to strengthen our organizations”
https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/amazon-workforce-reduction
Ars Technica — “Intuit’s AI gamble: Mass layoff of 1,800 paired with hiring spree”
https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2024/07/intuits-ai-gamble-mass-layoff-of-1800-paired-with-hiring-spree/
CNBC — “Klarna CEO says AI helped company shrink workforce by 40%”
https://www.cnbc.com/2025/05/14/klarna-ceo-says-ai-helped-company-shrink-workforce-by-40percent.html
CNN — “Duolingo lays off staff as language learning app shifts toward AI”
https://www.cnn.com/2024/01/09/tech/duolingo-layoffs-due-to-ai
Ars Technica — “Meta to cut 5% of employees deemed unfit for Zuckerberg’s AI-fueled future”
https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2025/01/meta-says-5-staff-cut-is-critical-to-further-ai-social-media/
Challenger, Gray & Christmas — “October Challenger Report: 153,074 Job Cuts on Cost-Cutting & AI”
https://www.challengergray.com/blog/october-challenger-report-153074-job-cuts-on-cost-cutting-ai/
CNBC — “AI-washing and the massive layoffs hitting the economy”
https://www.cnbc.com/2025/11/04/white-collar-layoffs-ai-cost-cutting-tariffs.html
Ars Technica — “AI will consume all of IT by 2030—but not all IT jobs, Gartner says”
https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2025/09/no-ai-jobs-bloodbath-as-ai-permeates-all-it-work-over-the-next-5-years/
World Economic Forum — “Future of Jobs Report 2025: The jobs of the future – and the skills you need to get them”
https://www.weforum.org/stories/2025/01/future-of-jobs-report-2025-jobs-of-the-future-and-the-skills-you-need-to-get-them/
Editor’s Note: This article was created by Alicia Shapiro, CMO of AiNews.com, with writing, image, and idea-generation support from ChatGPT, an AI assistant. However, the final perspective and editorial choices are solely Alicia Shapiro’s. Special thanks to ChatGPT for assistance with research and editorial support in crafting this article.