The data indicates that AI-related layoffs worldwide reached 128,000 employees as of July 1, 2026, exceeding the 125,000 layoffs recorded throughout the entirety of 2025. Companies across multiple industries are rapidly integrating AI systems and automation tools, resulting in widespread organisational restructuring and workforce optimisation.
The trend of AI-driven job displacement has evolved over several years. Global tech layoffs attributed to AI stood at approximately 81,000 in 2020, before declining in 2021. However, the numbers rose sharply thereafter, climbing to 165,000 in 2022 and peaking at 266,000 in 2023. Although the figures moderated in 2024 and 2025, the first half of 2026 has already exceeded the previous year’s total, signalling sustained pressure on traditional employment structures.
Geographically, the United States remains the most affected country, accounting for 71.33 percent of all AI-linked tech layoffs globally between January 2020 and July 2026. India ranks second with a 7.16 percent share, followed by Germany at 3.43 percent and the United Kingdom at 2.64 percent. Other countries collectively account for 15.44 percent of total job losses during the same period.
Within India, the impact of AI-related layoffs has been uneven across sectors. The education sector has experienced the highest share of job cuts at 21.67 percent, making it the most affected industry. It is followed by the financial services sector at 14.73 percent, the food industry at 12.26 percent, the transport sector at 11.03 percent, and consumer-facing businesses at 11 percent.
While Artificial Intelligence continues to generate new employment opportunities in fields such as machine learning, data science, and AI system development, it is simultaneously reducing demand for several traditional roles, intensifying the global debate over technological disruption and employment security.
The accelerating pace of AI adoption underscores a profound structural transformation in the global labour market, where efficiency gains are increasingly accompanied by workforce realignment and large-scale job displacement.
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