Tech layoffs on the back of the AI boom have become a stark reality in late 2025, with two of the world’s computing giants announcing significant workforce reductions in a single week.
HP Inc. has taken centre stage with the announcement of sweeping job cuts affecting thousands of employees globally, signalling a major strategic shift toward artificial intelligence and operational efficiency. This came in the same week that Apple announced more layoffs.
HP Inc., while posting its earnings, announced it would cut between 4,000 and 6,000 jobs—approximately 12 to 15 per cent of its global workforce—by the end of fiscal 2028.
The job reductions are part of a comprehensive restructuring tied to the company’s aggressive pivot toward AI-driven product development and services.
During its fiscal 2025 earnings announcement, HP Inc. reported fourth-quarter revenue of around $14.8 billion, with the company targeting gross run-rate cost savings of approximately $1 billion by fiscal 2028-end through restructuring efforts.
The restructuring charges are estimated at around $650 million, and the company projects an annual savings rate of nearly $1 billion once the initiative is fully implemented.
HP CEO Enrique Lores framed the job cuts as necessary to “streamline operations and invest more heavily in artificial intelligence capabilities”—a move reflecting how the entire tech sector is recalibrating priorities toward AI dominance.
Apple also announced layoffs this week, though on a much smaller scale. The iPhone maker confirmed it was cutting “dozens” of roles in its global sales division, saying the restructuring was necessary “to connect with even more customers” and streamline its go-to-market strategy.
HP neatly packaged the restructuring announcement in its earnings update. With fiscal 2025 revenue growth of 4 per cent year-on-year, HP is banking on artificial intelligence and cloud services to drive future profitability.
While Apple’s layoffs appear limited compared to HP’s, they hint at a disturbing trend. Major tech firms are reducing traditional roles while simultaneously ramping up hiring in AI-related positions.
For Indian employees and IT professionals, these layoff announcements carry a much higher significance, for it could potentially affect hiring, given India’s global capability centre network and offshore delivery models.
