HP is cutting 6,000 jobs. The reason? "AI adoption and enablement." The savings? $1 billion.
Here's the part that should alarm you: HP's revenue grew 3.2% last year to $55.3 billion. They're not struggling. They're profitable and growing.
This isn't about survival. It's about replacing you with software.
The playbook is simple: Deploy AI tools internally. Measure the productivity gains. Eliminate the humans who used to do that work. HP's own numbers spell it out—40% of savings from automated customer support, 40% from AI-managed operations, 20% from AI-assisted development.
Here's what your executive team isn't telling you: They're running the same math on your department right now. They're asking: "What percentage of our workforce can we eliminate if we deploy these tools?"
Every "AI-powered productivity tool" your company rolls out comes with an implicit question: How many fewer people do we need?
The timeline matters. HP is projecting this out to 2028. Multi-year transformation. Waves of cuts as the AI systems mature. And every major tech company is watching this playbook closely.
The AI transformation is real. The efficiency gains are real. But let's stop pretending this is innovation. This is systematic replacement of human labor with software, executed under the banner of transformation.
If you're a business professional, the question isn't whether your company will try this. It's when—and whether you'll see it coming. My advice: stay vigilant and find ways to adapt.