AI Directly Blamed for 2,000 Job Cuts at WiseTech
Australian logistics software company WiseTech is cutting 2,000 jobs, with its CEO explicitly attributing the workforce reduction to AI-driven automation. The CEO stated that AI is 'tightening its grip,' forcing the company to manage the talent and cost implications of the technology. The move represents one of the largest single layoffs directly blamed on AI implementation.
- The workforce reduction will be phased over fiscal years 2026 and 2027, impacting approximately 29% of the company's global staff. The initial cuts will target product, development, and customer service teams, with some departments facing headcount reductions of up to 50%. - These job cuts extend to employees from the recently acquired US-based software firm E2open, which WiseTech bought for $2.1 billion in August 2025. WiseTech has already achieved $50 million in annualized cost synergies from the integration, 18 months ahead of schedule. - The announcement coincided with the company's half-year earnings report, which showed a 76% increase in revenue to $672 million, largely due to the E2open acquisition. However, statutory net profit fell 36% because of acquisition-related expenses. - CEO Zubin Appoo justified the move by stating, "The era of manually writing code as the core act of engineering is over," positioning the cuts as part of a "deep AI transformation" to lower costs and improve scalability. - Investors reacted positively to the strategy, with WiseTech's stock price jumping as much as 10.7% following the announcement. - The restructuring is being overseen by CEO Zubin Appoo, who took the role in July 2025. This followed a period of controversy in late 2024 involving founder Richard White, who is now chairman, which prompted the leadership change to address investor governance concerns.
