AI-Driven Job Cuts Surge: 28,000 Monthly in Finance and Tech

Financial-activities and information sectors are losing 28,000 jobs per month on average in 2026, driven by accelerating AI adoption. This weakness stands out against a broader labor market that added 113,000 jobs monthly through May. Tech companies are increasingly citing AI for workforce reductions, and top bankers at JPMorgan, Citigroup, and Goldman Sachs have warned that AI will eliminate roles. The overall economy has seen 102,000 announced job cuts attributed to AI so far this year, with tech accounting for a third of all layoffs. Bureau of Labor Statistics projections show office and administrative support occupations—customer service reps, bank tellers, insurance claim processors—will experience some of the largest employment declines over the next decade, partly due to AI. These roles make up a quarter of financial-activities employment, a higher share than any other major industry.

Research from Stanford’s Digital Economy Lab finds employment has weakened in occupations where AI automates tasks, while holding up in roles where AI assists workers. A California Policy Lab tracker shows finance and insurance had the highest concentration of unemployment claims from workers in highly AI-exposed occupations. John Challenger, CEO of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, noted that AI is making an impact faster than any previous technology. Barclays senior US economist Pooja Sriram suggests some of the job cuts may be genuine productivity replacement, but also a cost-cutting exercise given the huge AI investments. For workers like software engineer Bill Matonte, laid off from Citigroup, the reality is already harsh—he’s been searching for months after previously landing jobs quickly. While macro-level effects remain too early to detect broadly, the data points to a structural shift in white-collar employment.