Oracle cuts roughly 21,000 jobs in FY 26 amid expanded AI push
Oracle's workforce stood at 141,000 as of May 31, 2026, down from around 162,000 at the same time last year.
- Jun 23, 2026,
- Updated Jun 23, 2026 11:06 AM IST
Oracle has reduced its total workforce by 21000, which accounts to 13% of its global headcount. The tech giant is reportedly restructuring its business by bringing greater Artificial Intelligence (AI) adoption across operations and expanding investments.
According to its annual report released on June 22, the company's workforce stood at 141,000 as of May 31, 2026, down from around 162,000 at the same time last year.
The company revealed to spend over $1.84 billion in severance payments and other expenses related to office closures, contract terminations, relocation, and other restructuring measures. For comparison, Oracle spent $374 million in the previous fiscal year.
This showcases a sharp increase, suggesting Oracle is going through an extensive restructuring with layoffs and other organisational changes in fiscal 2026.
Oracle stated several reasons behind its workforce reductions that included changes in product priorities, employee performance considerations, strategic realignments and others. This is expected to be due to growing AI adoption and changes in business operations.
“The deployment of AI technologies across our operations has resulted, and may continue to result, in reductions to our workforce,” Oracle stated.
The annual report confirms the previous speculation of layoffs at Oracle at a global level. Reports suggest that over 12,000 employees were impacted in India alone.
Alongside the workforce reduction, the company also revoked offer letters of freshers from IITs and NITs across India. Therefore, many employees and freshers have been impacted by the decision and the company’s restructuring phase.
Previously, the company announced to spend a huge amount of money on infrastructure and expansion. It plans to spend over $70 billion this year to grow its fast-growing cloud and AI businesses. To help pay for those investments, the company plans to raise an additional $40 billion through a mix of debt and equity, including a previously announced $20 billion stock offering.
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Oracle has reduced its total workforce by 21000, which accounts to 13% of its global headcount. The tech giant is reportedly restructuring its business by bringing greater Artificial Intelligence (AI) adoption across operations and expanding investments.
According to its annual report released on June 22, the company's workforce stood at 141,000 as of May 31, 2026, down from around 162,000 at the same time last year.
The company revealed to spend over $1.84 billion in severance payments and other expenses related to office closures, contract terminations, relocation, and other restructuring measures. For comparison, Oracle spent $374 million in the previous fiscal year.
This showcases a sharp increase, suggesting Oracle is going through an extensive restructuring with layoffs and other organisational changes in fiscal 2026.
Oracle stated several reasons behind its workforce reductions that included changes in product priorities, employee performance considerations, strategic realignments and others. This is expected to be due to growing AI adoption and changes in business operations.
“The deployment of AI technologies across our operations has resulted, and may continue to result, in reductions to our workforce,” Oracle stated.
The annual report confirms the previous speculation of layoffs at Oracle at a global level. Reports suggest that over 12,000 employees were impacted in India alone.
Alongside the workforce reduction, the company also revoked offer letters of freshers from IITs and NITs across India. Therefore, many employees and freshers have been impacted by the decision and the company’s restructuring phase.
Previously, the company announced to spend a huge amount of money on infrastructure and expansion. It plans to spend over $70 billion this year to grow its fast-growing cloud and AI businesses. To help pay for those investments, the company plans to raise an additional $40 billion through a mix of debt and equity, including a previously announced $20 billion stock offering.
For Unparalleled coverage of India's Businesses and Economy – Subscribe to Business Today Magazine