Salesforce Cuts 4,000 Support Jobs as AI Takes the Lead

4000

Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff has cut 4,000 customer service jobs, shrinking the team from 9,000 to 5,000 as AI now handles about 50% of support interactions and has reduced costs by 17% since early 2025. Microsoft has laid off 9,000 more staff this year, bringing its 2025 total to 15,000, while Klarna’s AI already does the work of 700 people. Altogether, over 64,000 tech jobs have been cut in 2025 as companies automate sales and support with AI.

85%

A new Skillsoft survey of 1,000 HR and learning leaders found only 1 in 10 are fully confident their workforce has the right skills for the next 1–2 years, even though 85% have talent development systems and just 6% call them “outstanding.” The biggest gaps are in leadership, AI and tech skills, with only 1 in 5 saying their training aligns with company goals. Despite the need, only 12% of the world’s largest companies have a change goal focused on people and just 3% invest directly in skills.

12%

A Federal Reserve Bank of New York survey found AI use jumped from 25% to 40% of service firms (and from 16% to 26% of manufacturers) in a year, with nearly half expecting to use AI in the next six months. Layoffs tied to AI are still rare—just 1% of service firms cut jobs this year versus 10% last year—but about 12% have already reduced hiring and nearly 25% plan to do so soon, especially for college-degree roles. At the same time, firms are retraining staff—over a third of service firms and 14% of manufacturers now, and nearly half plan to retrain workers in the coming months.

94%

A ComPsych report shows mental health leave days surged 300% — from 2% of employees in 2019 to 8% in 2024 — while overall leaves of absence rose 30% in the same period. Demand for support is high: 77% of workers see mental health benefits as essential, and 94% of large U.S. employers have expanded mental health coverage in the past three years. Employees who use assistance programs return to work about six days sooner, while those who don’t take mental health services have leave periods 12% longer.

$3.3B

Oracle projected massive cloud growth despite missing earnings ($1.47 vs. $1.48 expected) and revenue ($14.93B vs. $15.04B). Remaining performance obligations soared 359% to $455B, and cloud infrastructure revenue grew 55% to $3.3B last quarter, with Oracle forecasting $18B in 2026 (up 77% from 2025) and $144B by 2030. The company also struck major deals with Google and OpenAI, bringing GPT-5 and Gemini AI to its cloud.