At Least Your Old Coworkers Are Making More Money –
AI Job Loss at Klarna Sets a Stark Example
AI is reshaping the workforce, and Klarna is at the center of it. Discover how automation is cutting jobs, what CEOs are saying, and why your old coworkers might be better off.
The Harsh Reality of AI-Driven Productivity
While AI continues to promise productivity improvements, the costs are becoming increasingly clear, especially for employees. Klarna’s recent moves demonstrate just how real these threats are.
Although doomsday predictions about AI eliminating jobs haven’t fully come true yet, the direction is undeniable. As companies explore automation, employees are increasingly left behind. The tech sector is already providing stark examples.
The Forecast Was Right, It Just Took Time
When generative AI exploded in late 2022, many critics raised red flags. Investment bank Goldman Sachs even forecasted that over 300 million jobs could vanish due to automation within a decade.
Those fears weren’t entirely unfounded. In 2023, major corporations such as IBM began freezing hiring for non-customer-facing roles. CEO Arvind Krishna said these jobs would eventually be automated, especially in HR and operations.
Soon after, British Telecom (BT) announced plans to eliminate tens of thousands of roles in a similar drive toward automation. While it seemed extreme at the time, it was just the beginning.
Klarna’s Quiet Transformation into a Lean, AI-Driven Machine
Fast-forward to 2024. Klarna, the Swedish fintech giant known for its “Buy Now, Pay Later” service, has become a prime example of AI’s disruptive power. Once boasting over 5,000 employees, the company froze hiring and began cutting staff after adopting generative AI solutions.
In an August 2024 interview with the Financial Times, Klarna CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski openly admitted the company plans to reduce its workforce from 3,800 to just 2,000 in the coming years.
AI Assistant Replaces 700 Jobs And Counting
By February, Klarna proudly announced that its new AI customer service assistant was doing the work of 700 employees. Siemiatkowski claimed this marked a “deep societal shift,” impacting not only corporate profits but also the viability of countless jobs.
For companies, this sounds like a dream. For workers, it’s a nightmare.
He added during an interview on BBC Radio 4 that remaining staff may benefit, seeing higher pay and increased value in sectors that become more essential. But that’s cold comfort for those already replaced by code.
Empty Promises of “Job Creation” from AI
There was a time when tech advocates promised AI would create as many jobs as it eliminates. Those promises are now starting to ring hollow. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) recently warned that 40% of global jobs are at risk from AI and that the technology could worsen income inequality.
The Klarna case proves that we’re not just imagining these outcomes; they are happening in real time, and faster than most predicted.
What Klarna’s Strategy Means for the Rest of Us
What’s alarming is how normalized these strategies have become. While IBM’s Krishna tried to walk back his earlier statements, Klarna has embraced this new reality without apology. Siemiatkowski’s bold tone only reinforces the idea that executives feel empowered to pursue aggressive AI-based cuts because now, it’s acceptable.
While some staff may be rewarded, most will be left behind. It’s becoming clear that AI will not be a job partner; it will be a job competitor.
Time to Rethink Work in the AI Era
Klarna’s example is just one of many. As AI tools become smarter and cheaper, more companies will choose automation over humans, not because they have to, but because they can.
This shift isn’t on the horizon. It’s already here.
If leaders, governments, and workers don’t act now, AI-driven job loss won’t just be a future possibility—it’ll become the new status quo.
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