Oracle is reportedly preparing another round of job cuts as it continues to increase spending on data centres and cloud infrastructure to meet growing demand for artificial intelligence workloads. The reported workforce reductions come as the company seeks to manage rising costs associated with its large-scale AI infrastructure expansion.
According to reports, Oracle managers have been asked to identify employees who could be affected by the potential cuts before September 1, with some teams potentially facing reductions in the double digits. Oracle has not confirmed the reported layoffs.
AI Infrastructure Spending Drives Cost Pressure
Oracle is investing heavily in data centres and cloud capacity to support AI workloads. The company expects to raise between $45 billion and $50 billion during 2026 to finance its infrastructure expansion.
The company is also building infrastructure for major AI customers, including OpenAI, as demand for computing capacity continues to increase.
The scale of this investment has placed greater pressure on Oracle to control operating expenses. Workforce reductions could form part of the company’s efforts to offset some of the costs associated with its infrastructure expansion.
Oracle Headcount Has Already Declined
The reported cuts follow a significant reduction in Oracle’s workforce.
The company’s headcount declined by approximately 21,000 employees during the financial year ended May 31, leaving Oracle with around 141,000 employees at the end of the period. This represents a workforce reduction of roughly 13%.
Oracle’s workforce in India has also reportedly been affected. Earlier reports indicated that as many as 12,000 roles could be impacted, although the effect varies across teams.
AI Is Changing the Nature of Work
Oracle has said that AI tools are improving productivity and allowing certain tasks to be handled by smaller teams. However, the technology has not necessarily resulted in the complete elimination of individual roles.
A former Oracle consultant told Firstpost that automation had reduced the amount of manual work involved in several tasks rather than directly replacing his position.
The former employee said Oracle’s AI tools had been used to automate activities including validations, data processing and API integrations. His work involved backend development using Java and Spring Boot, where automation helped reduce repetitive coding and other manual tasks.
The reported workforce changes highlight the growing connection between AI investment, automation and workforce restructuring, as technology companies expand computing infrastructure while reassessing how work is organised and how many employees are required for particular functions.
