Chinese tech companies cut 1.3 lakh employees amid AI shift
New Delhi: China’s major technology companies have cut nearly 1.3 lakh jobs in the past year as the rapid adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) and corporate restructuring is reshaping the sector, a new report has said, criticizing the Chinese Communist Party (CPC) for remaining silent on the massive workforce disruption.
A report by Sri Lanka-based Daily Mirror said that Alibaba, Tencent, ByteDance, Meituan, and Baidu have announced thousands of job cuts, with some departments – particularly travel, content, and e-commerce support – reporting reductions of 30 percent to 50 percent.
The report said that in the past 18 months, the five major internet companies have collectively laid off more than 1.3 lakh employees. The report further said that JD.com is planning to cut about 12,000 jobs.
The report states, “This wave of layoffs is particularly troubling because it’s occurring at a time when profits are rising. Previously, companies cut staff to survive; now they’re cutting staff to optimize.”
The companies announced these cuts as part of a shift to AI-powered products and services.
The report states, “Beijing’s ‘AI Plus Action Plan’ aims to achieve 70% AI penetration in specific industries by 2027 and 90% by 2030. Tools like Alibaba’s Wukong platform promise to automate entire departments, offering “one-person company” capabilities for e-commerce, live streaming, and software development.”
Experts estimate that approximately 70 million jobs, or 9.6% of China’s workforce, are at high risk of being replaced by AI, with younger workers facing greater risk.
The report states that an unofficial “35-year age limit” for job retention has emerged, alleging that workers in their 30s, often married and with debts and children, are being laid off en masse.
Younger workers are less protected. The report states, “A 26-year-old ByteDance employee who was fired after six years in content operations admitted that the company once had a very famous name, but in reality, there was constant overtime and fierce competition. Now, even the resume boost of a major tech brand offers little protection.”
The media house said that the government avoids implementing policies to protect workers or retrain them, and instead portrays automation as a symbol of progress.
