BT Deepens Job Cuts Due to AI

BT Group Chief Executive Alison Kirkby has indicated the possibility of further job cuts in the coming years, driven by rapid advances in artificial intelligence technologies, according to the Financial Times.

Kirkby stated that the company’s current plan to cut more than 40,000 jobs and reduce costs by around £3 billion ($4 billion) by the end of the decade may not fully reflect the potential offered by artificial intelligence.

She added, “Depending on what we learn from artificial intelligence, we may have the opportunity to further reduce the size of BT by the end of the decade.”

BT, the UK’s largest fixed and mobile telecommunications provider, announced in 2023 its intention to eliminate up to 55,000 jobs, including employees and contractors, by 2030, as part of a strategy to reduce costs and adopt a more agile operational structure.