US technology giant Oracle Corporation is reportedly planning large-scale layoffs as it faces rising costs linked to artificial intelligence infrastructure and expanding data-centre operations.
According to multiple reports, the company may cut between 20,000 and 30,000 jobs worldwide, which could affect around 10% of its global workforce. If the plan goes ahead, it would mark one of the biggest job cuts in Oracle’s history.
The expected layoffs come as the company ramps up investments in data centres to support advanced artificial intelligence services. Building and running these facilities requires expensive hardware, including specialised chips and powerful servers needed to train and run AI systems.
A major factor behind the rising spending is Oracle’s partnership with OpenAI, the AI company led by Sam Altman. Oracle has committed significant resources to providing cloud infrastructure that supports OpenAI’s AI models and tools.
Analysts say Oracle may need to invest billions of dollars in new data-centre capacity in the coming years as demand for AI computing continues to grow. Reports suggest that the company is looking at layoffs as a way to free up $8 billion to $10 billion to support these investments.
The company is also facing financial pressure because funding large-scale data-centre projects has become more challenging. Some US banks have reportedly grown cautious about lending money for massive AI infrastructure projects, which has made financing more expensive.
To manage these rising costs, Oracle is reviewing several options. These include cutting operational expenses, asking some customers to make higher upfront payments for cloud services, and possibly selling certain assets to raise funds.
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