Oracle reduced its global workforce by 13 per cent, cutting approximately 21,000 jobs to bring its total headcount down to 1,41,000 as of May 31, 2026.
The US technology firm spent 1.84 billion dollars on severance payments and restructuring costs in fiscal 2026, up from 374 million dollars in the previous year.
Oracle plans a massive capital expenditure of 70 billion dollars in the current fiscal year, raising 40 billion dollars through debt and equity to fund AI data centres.
The company warned that the deployment of artificial intelligence technologies across its operations may continue to result in further workforce reductions.
Oracle Slashes 21,000 Jobs as Tech Giant Warns of Further AI-Driven Cuts
The firm said the workforce adjustments were driven by management and product changes, performance issues, strategic shifts, and acquisitions.
Oracle Corp File Photo
Summary
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Oracle cut about 21,000 jobs globally in fiscal 2026, reducing its workforce by 13% as the company reshapes its operations around artificial intelligence. The job cuts brought the US technology firm's total headcount down from 1,62,000 employees last year to 1,41,000 as of May 31, 2026, Reuters reported.
The company detailed the workforce reductions in its latest annual report released on Monday. The firm said the workforce adjustments were driven by management and product changes, performance issues, strategic shifts, and acquisitions.
"The deployment of AI technologies across our operations has resulted, and may continue to result, in reductions to our workforce," the company said in the annual report.
These actions once more raise concerns about AI-related job losses, which are rising quickly, as 196 tech firms have together dismissed over 119,800 workers so far this year, according to Layoffs.fyi, a site that monitors industry-wide layoffs, cited in the report.
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The Restructuring Toll
The technology giant spent $1.84 billion on severance payments and other exit costs related to restructuring in fiscal 2026. This expense represents a sharp increase from the $374 million recorded in the prior fiscal year, according to the filing.
The financial impact follows an earlier warning regarding workforce reductions. In March 2026, Oracle announced plans to cut thousands of jobs as it grappled with a cash crunch caused by its AI data centre expansion effort.
Funding AI Ambitions
Oracle is transitioning from its traditional role as a database software company into a major cloud computing player. Under Chairman Larry Ellison, Oracle is building massive data centres designed to handle AI workloads for clients, including OpenAI, to compete directly with industry giants Amazon and Microsoft.
Unlike its cash-rich competitors Amazon and Microsoft, which rely on internal cash flows to fund their investments, Oracle depends on burning cash and raising debt to fund its artificial intelligence expansion.
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To support this capital-intensive strategy, Oracle expects net capital expenditure of around $70 billion in the current fiscal year. The company plans to raise $40 billion through debt and equity to finance the expansion, a figure that includes a previously announced stock issuance of $20 billion.