As 2026 begins, analysts are pointing to another wave of significant workplace shifts driven by artificial intelligence and automation, including warnings that many companies will continue to reduce headcount this year as they reshape organisational structures around AI-led models.
To provide a broader perspective on the scale of layoffs in the tech sector throughout 2025 and going into 2026, RationalFX has produced a report, revealing that tech sector layoffs neared 245,000 in 2025.
To determine which companies led 2025’s biggest job cuts, the report assesses layoff data from multiple verified sources, including U.S. WARN notices, TrueUp, TechCrunch, and the Layoffs.fyi tracker. This assessment covers announcements made since the start of 2025.
U.S. sees the most layoffs
According to the latest aggregated figures, 244,851 employees in the global technology sector have been laid off this year. The U.S. is the country with the largest amount of layoffs, 170,630 people working in 220 companies were fired last year, or nearly 69.7% of all layoffs around the globe. India lands in second place with 19,049 tech layoffs, and Japan sits at third place with 11,608 estimated tech layoffs. In Europe, Ireland, Spain, and Switzerland are the countries most affected by tech layoffs, with an estimated 11,500, 7,450, and 5,156 tech jobs slashed in 2025, respectively.
Countries With The Most Significant Mass Tech Sector Layoffs:
- United States: 170,630 layoffs
- India: 19,049 layoffs
- Japan: 11,608 layoffs
- Ireland: 11,500 layoffs
- Spain: 7,450 layoffs
- Switzerland: 5,156 layoffs
- Sweden: 3,718 layoffs
- Israel: 3,446 layoffs
- Canada: 3,039 layoffs
- United Kingdom: 1,866 layoffs
Throughout the entirety of 2025, a minimum of 244,851 employees in the tech sector have been laid off globally, with U.S. companies responsible for 69.69% of these cuts, or 170,630 positions. European tech companies have slashed at least 32,608 roles, roughly 13.5% of the total. Note that the actual figures may be much higher, considering most companies rarely comment on layoff reports.
The analysis shows that an estimated 69,840 job cuts were directly linked to the adoption of AI and automation technologies. One of the more prominent examples comes from Amazon, which explained that the reason behind its latest workforce reduction was AI in its memo to employees. Ireland-based IT company Accenture also laid off 11,000 employees in an AI push earlier in the year.
While layoffs in Europe have been significant, they pale in comparison to those at leading U,S. tech firms in 2025. Intel, for example, cut 33,900 jobs last year, with Amazon and Microsoft following, reducing their workforces by 19,555 and 19,215 employees, respectively. Combined, these three companies have slashed over 72,700 jobs, more than double the total tech layoffs across Europe.
Intel and Microsoft lead the way
Intel and Microsoft top the U.S. in layoffs this year, with 33,900 and 20,009 employees affected, respectively. In India, Mumbai-based IT services provider TCS led the largest wave of job cuts, letting go of 12,000 staff in 2025. In Europe, more than 11,000 employees were made redundant at Accenture as the company moved towards greater automation and trained its workforce in the use of AI agents.
According to Alan Cohen, analyst at RationalFX, in a note to Digital Journal: “Tech sector layoffs in 2025 displaced hundreds of thousands of workers worldwide as companies accelerated structural resets rather than short-term cost corrections. While macroeconomic pressures such as high interest rates, trade restrictions, and geopolitical uncertainty continued to weigh on business confidence, the dominant force behind last year’s job cuts was the rapid adoption of automation and artificial intelligence.”
In an other trend, Cohen assesses: “Unlike earlier layoff waves driven by over-hiring, many of 2025’s reductions were permanent, with entire roles eliminated as companies rebuilt around AI-first operating models. Despite heavy investment in automation, these restructurings have not always delivered immediate efficiency gains, highlighting a growing gap between expectations around AI-driven productivity and the realities of large-scale workforce transformation.”
As to the coming year, Cohen predicts: “Layoffs are not likely to end abruptly in 2026, with structural pressures, including automation, strategic pivoting, and economic caution, suggesting that workforce reductions will persist through at least the first quarter of the year. While certain sub-sectors will likely continue to contract, other areas (especially AI-related roles) could see robust hiring.”
