Executives at many tech and related companies are increasingly framing workforce cuts as resulting from artificial intelligence adoption, even when their actual AI efforts remain limited, experimental or far from replacing large numbers of jobs. According to reporting from TechSpot, leaders are telling investors and the public that layoffs are part of a transition to an “AI-driven future,” despite struggling to show that AI systems are truly operating at scale inside their organisations.
Data from employment trackers shows that in 2025 AI was cited as a reason in more than 50,000 planned job cuts, placing it alongside traditional explanations like cost-cutting and restructuring. However, many of the same companies openly admit that their AI projects are still in narrow pilot stages and not yet capable of actually performing the work of those they are laying off. Critics argue this creates a gap between the public narrative and the technological realities on the ground.
Analysts and researchers have coined the term “AI-washing” to describe this phenomenon, comparing it to earlier corporate practices like “greenwashing,” where companies overstate their environmental efforts. In the context of layoffs, AI-washing refers to executives using AI as a strategic signal to markets — positioning cuts as forward-looking innovation rather than admitting to financial pressures, over-hiring or other internal issues.
The result is that the most tangible impact of AI on the broader job market today may be rhetorical rather than operational. While AI is influencing how companies talk about the future of work and their workforce strategies, independent studies suggest it has not yet caused a large, measurable shift in overall employment patterns. Instead, corporate narratives tied to AI may be serving more to reshape investor perception and justify business decisions than to reflect genuine technological replacement of workers.
