US companies bet on AI to improve efficiency, laying off 950000 employees from January to September

The number of layoffs announced by US companies from January to September 2025 increased by 50% year-on-year, reaching approximately 950000 people. Experts have pointed out that ‘companies believe that the introduction of AI is now an opportunity for layoffs’. The white-collar class is greatly affected by AI replacement, with Microsoft announcing 15000 layoffs and Amazon laying off 14000 employees

American companies are laying off employees one after another. According to private statistics, the number of layoffs announced by American companies from January to September 2025 increased by 50% compared to the same period last year, expanding to about 950000 people. Although the US economy and unemployment statistics have not yet shown a deteriorating trend, large companies are betting on AI to improve efficiency and promote layoffs, and are starting to not increase employment.

According to data from American research firm Challenger, Gray&Christmas, the number of layoffs by American companies and organizations from January to September was 946426, an increase of 55% compared to the same period last year. According to the report released at the time, the layoffs of government agencies by the US Department of Efficiency (DOGE) have had a significant impact, but even after excluding DOGE related layoffs, the number of layoffs has increased by about 10%. It reached the highest level since 2020 when the COVID-19 spread.

The most common reason for layoffs is “market and economic conditions”, which account for 20% of the overall situation. In particular, the number of layoffs in consumer related fields that are susceptible to tariffs imposed by the Trump administration in the United States has increased, with layoffs in the retail and logistics sectors tripling and doubling respectively compared to the same period last year.

UPS, a large logistics company, announced on October 28th that it will lay off 48000 employees in the United States. This is because the processing volume of packages from China has decreased due to the impact of the Trump administration’s policies. Procter&Gamble also announced the layoff of 7000 employees worldwide due to the worsening consumer psychology caused by the increase in tariffs.

Currently, AI is the biggest focus. According to statistics from Challenger, Gray&Christmas, only 4% of companies list AI as a direct cause, but layoffs that are optimistic about AI improving business efficiency have begun.

Especially among white-collar workers who are greatly affected by AI substitution, the trend of layoffs is particularly evident. Accenture, a large consulting firm, announced a layoff plan worth approximately 130 billion yen worldwide, including in the United States, and has initiated employee re education and business adjustments related to the introduction of AI. According to reports, consulting giant PwC will also lay off 1500 employees in the United States.

Technology companies that have achieved new profit highs from July to September 2025 have also laid off employees one after another. Against the backdrop of increased investment in data center infrastructure and continuous advancement of AI automation programming, Microsoft announced a total of 15000 layoffs in May and July. Amazon announced the layoff of 14000 employees, with a focus on managers and engineers.

Jessica Kriegel, Chief Strategy Officer of Culture Partners, a large consulting firm, said, “The increasing number of layoffs this time is not related to economic conditions, which is very rare. AI is becoming a new reason to justify layoffs.

Although the direct causal relationship between AI and unemployment is still weak, some companies have begun to use it as a good reason.

Amazon’s CEO Andy Jassy announced in June that as AI efficiency improves, “employees will continue to decrease. Although layoffs have been implemented, the attitude changed during the financial report briefing on October 30th, stating that “at least it is not yet a source of revenue caused by the introduction of AI”, fearing that it may give people the impression that AI is causing layoffs, so they had to urgently put out the fire.

Robin Erickson from the Conference Board, a research firm, analyzed that “the background of widespread industry layoffs is that companies believe that the introduction of AI is now an opportunity for layoffs. Even if layoffs occur now, they will not be detected.