The cybersecurity firm that gained notoriety last year for causing a significant global IT outage has revealed plans to partially reduce its workforce by 5% citing “AI efficiency.”
In a memo to employees earlier this week, CEO George Kurtz, who was released to the US stock market, stated that 500 jobs, or 5% of the total workforce, would be eliminated globally due to AI advancements created by businesses.
“We are at a pivotal point in the market and technology, where AI is transforming every sector, accelerating threats, and changing customer demands,” he explained.
Kurtz emphasized that AI “will streamline the adoption process and enable quicker innovation from concepts to products,” adding that it “enhances efficiency in both front and back offices.”
“AI acts as a force multiplier across the enterprise,” he added.
Other factors contributing to the layoffs include the need for sustainable market growth and expanded product lines.
The company anticipates incurring costs of up to USD 53 million due to the job reductions.
CrowdStrike reported a revenue of USD 1 billion in the fourth quarter of 2025, reflecting a 25% increase from the same period in 2024, despite a loss of USD 92 million.
Last July, CrowdStrike unintentionally promoted an erroneous software update intended to detect cybersecurity threats, which affected 8.5 million Windows systems globally.
The incident caused widespread disruption, impacting airports, hospitals, television networks, payment systems, and individual computers.
Aaron McCann, VP of research and advisory at Gartner, expressed skepticism regarding claims of AI efficiencies amid declining revenue forecasts, as seen with CrowdStrike in March.
“I view it as a justification for workforce reductions, particularly in tech. It’s fundamentally a financial decision,” he remarked, expressing immediate skepticism.
McEwan noted that firms are under pressure to justify significant investments made in AI.
“The productivity improvements we anticipated from AI are not materializing.”
Gartner’s survey indicates that fewer than 50% of employees utilize AI in their roles, with only 8% employing AI tools to boost productivity.
Toby Walsh, a professor of artificial intelligence at the University of New South Wales, described CrowdStrike’s announcement as “somewhat alarming” following last year’s suspension.
“They would be more effective by reallocating these 5% of employees to emergency responses and bug fixes,” he advised.
Walsh suggested that the market should brace itself for more such announcements in the future.
“It’s straightforward. Increased profits for companies, fewer jobs for workers. We should learn from the first industrial revolution. By uniting, we could use these savings to enhance the quality and quantity of work for everyone.”
Niusha Shafiabady, an associate professor of computational intelligence at the Australian Catholic University, stated that AI-induced job displacement is an “inevitable reality.”
“Even with good intentions, this transformation will occur. Regrettably, many will lose their traditional roles due to AI and technology,” she remarked.
“If companies can save costs by leveraging AI and technology, they will do so, resulting in job losses. This is the stark reality.”
The 2023 World Economic Forum report predicted that AI and other macroeconomic factors would affect nearly 23% of jobs globally within five years. While 69 million jobs are expected to be created, 83 million are projected to be eliminated, leading to a net decline of 2%, according to Shafiabady.
McEwan asserted that companies, especially in high-tech sectors, are exploring ways to gradually reduce their workforce through AI.
“I firmly believe that companies are emerging that can effectively shrink their workforce thanks to AI,” he noted.
“It largely depends on the type of product being sold. However, most companies at this juncture would benefit more from enhancing their workforce rather than using AI as a replacement.”
Has your job been lost to AI? Please reach out at josh.taylor@theguardian.com
Source: www.theguardian.com
