U.S. job cuts in October were the worst layoffs since 2003, according to a report from Challenger, Gray & Christmas.
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As companies go all-in on artificial intelligence, thousands of workers lose their jobs, making AI layoffs a major theme in 2025.
In October, tech giant Amazon laid off 14,000 employees as it made investments in its biggest bets, including AI. Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff said in September that the company had cut 4,000 customer support roles and said 50% of the company’s work could be done with AI.
Several companies in the U.S. and Europe, from Accenture and Lufthansa to Klarna, have announced similar plans to leverage AI to become more efficient and lean.
The U.S. faced its highest level of layoffs in October since 2003, with a total of 153,074 layoffs, an increase of 183% from September and 175% from the same month last year, according to a new report from outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas. This year marks the worst year for announced layoffs since 2009.
In this tough economic climate, professionals who have lost their jobs to AI are probably contemplating what to do next in their careers. Should you move into a new industry or profession, or improve your skills arsenal?
Fabian Stefani, an assistant professor of AI at the Oxford Internet Institute, stressed how important it is to “be skeptical and investigate” AI, as some companies are using it as a scapegoat for redundancies.
“Is this really because of AI? Companies say it’s about automation and AI… It could be about past mishandling, it could be about economic downturns, it could be all sorts of other things. Advice on what people should do next really depends on whether it’s really about automation or really about something else,” Stefani said in an interview with CNBC Make It.
According to Stephanie, if the layoffs aren’t really about automation, an easy solution is to find the same or similar position at another company. For example, if you are a software developer, such jobs are still in high demand in other companies.
However, if your role is slowly becoming obsolete due to AI, it’s time to start thinking about upskilling.
Leverage adjacent skill sets
“Upskilling can be a good way to move into a more promising career path,” Daniel Chao, chief economist at Glassdoor, told CNBC Make It.
He said whether you were fired because of AI or for some other reason, it’s important to reflect on what you already have, a broader skill set that can help you stand out.
Stephanie calls this a “bundle of skills” that every professional possesses, because skills are never acquired “in isolation.”
For example, a software developer with technical skills such as programming languages and debugging may also have some management and communication skills.
Learning something about arts and crafts or a foreign language may be far from your skill set, he says. “But learning statistical skills, for example, isn’t that far off, because technically speaking, it’s adjacent to the bundle of skills you have.”
By looking at your ‘skills map’, you can make realistic choices about your future career path and gain access to opportunities without having to invest a lot of effort and money, such as getting another degree.
AI literacy
With most professionals and recruiters increasingly preferring workers to stay ahead of the curve with AI, AI literacy is becoming a must-have skill.
In fact, LinkedIn’s Skills on the Rise report from earlier this year found that AI literacy ranked first as the most popular skill that people were adding to their profiles, and that the category was also seen more often by employers.
“Just as typing and computer literacy have become universal expectations for many jobs, AI literacy is likely to become a fundamental requirement for future jobs,” Zhao said.
He added that “people who can experiment with AI and find ways to apply it” will be more valuable to companies.
Stephanie agreed, saying research has shown that demonstrating AI skills shows you’re “leveraging technology” and “getting ahead of the wave,” which is an advantage for employers.
These skills range from being able to create prompts to a chatbot, debugging code, or knowing how to use co-pilot.
He added that it is important to develop AI skills that complement existing expertise, as well as leveraging adjacent skill sets.
For example, if you are involved in business operations, there is little benefit to learning how to become a programmer, as it requires more money and effort.
However, there will always be “AI applications just around the corner,” he said. In a business operations environment, you will learn how to effectively communicate with AI and encourage optimal responses.
There are also certain soft skills that AI cannot perform. AI may be great at debugging your code, but it can’t effectively manage your team.
“That might actually be an adjacent skill to you, because maybe you know a software developer and you want to step up your game and not only do coding, but also manage people who work in technology. That’s one thing: develop those complementary skills,” Stephanie added.
