It’s mostly ZIRP hangover. The over hiring in those years was ludicrous. AI is having some effect at the margins but it’s mostly an excuse. Companies always p

It’s mostly ZIRP hangover. The over hiring in those years was ludicrous. AI is having some effect at the margins but it’s mostly an excuse. Companies always prefer to avoid saying they are just laying people off. It can be a negative market signal to investors, which is paradoxical, since it might indicate lower growth expectations. It also creates possible exposure to lawsuits depending on the circumstances and state. The nice thing about AI as an excuse is you can say to your investors and board “we are shedding cost but still growing and in fact our productivity is up because we are leveraging AI!”