Major Tech Firms Slash Tens of Thousands of Jobs in 2025 Amid AI Takeover
Microsoft, IBM, Meta and others are firing white-collar workers fast. AI is rewriting the workforce.
The layoffs are brutal. In May, Microsoft cut over 6,000 software engineers, banking on AI for coding. The same month, IBM axed thousands of HR jobs. Back in February, Meta dropped 3,600 employees, about 5% of its staff, shifting to AI-first. This is no blip — it’s a tectonic economic shift. 
Unemployment filings hit their highest point since last fall. Big names like Procter & Gamble and Starbucks plan layoffs too. Trade wars might play a part, but AI-driven automation is the clear accelerant.
Experts warn Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) could make this chaos look small. AGI means AI that thinks and learns like humans across all tasks. Many say AGI could arrive in 2-5 years, shaking both white- and blue-collar jobs to their cores.
Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic, doubles down on the warning:
"What is striking to me about this AI boom is that it’s bigger, it’s broader, and it’s moving faster than anything has before."
"Compared to previous technology changes, I’m a little bit more worried about the labor impact, simply because it’s happening so fast that, yes, people will adapt, but they may not adapt fast enough."
Amodei says half of entry-level white-collar jobs in law, finance, consulting, marketing, and tech could disappear within five years.
Ben Goertzel, CEO of SingularityNET, predicts a quick leap from AGI to superintelligence — AI outsmarting humans across the board:
“To my mind, we’re roughly on track to human-level AGI by 2029.”
“I think it’ll only be a few years from a human-level AGI to a super AGI, because that human-level AGI will be able to program and invent new chips and invent new forms of networking.”
Jobs already vulnerable:
- Software engineers: AI handles code faster and better.
- Human resources: AI screens resumes and manages firing.
- Legal assistants: AI reviews contracts and law cases.
- Customer service: AI chatbots replace call centers.
- Financial analysts: AI crunches numbers and reports.
- Content creators: AI writes and designs — strikes happened over this in 2023.
Tobias Sytsma, economist at the Rand Corporation, says cognitive, higher-education jobs face the biggest threat.
Healthcare workers hold on for now thanks to regulations, but AI’s creeping in.
Goertzel also warns AI could disrupt blue-collar jobs later once robotics catch up.
“Once AI becomes even slightly smarter than humans, we’ll see massive unemployment.”
“It may start with junior white-collar jobs, but I think it will quickly extend to plumbers, electricians, janitors—everyone.”
“Even the presidency could be automated,” Goertzel added — but political norms block that, for now.
This isn’t a far-off problem. AI is already reshaping jobs today. The desk next to you might be next.
