Samwise High Tech Recruiting Newsletter
Sunday, June 28, 2026
2026 Tech Layoff Pace Reaches 882 Workers Per Day as AI-Driven Restructuring Continues
The tech sector’s AI-driven workforce reduction continued this week, with TrueUp’s Layoffs Tracker recording 421 layoff events so far in 2026, affecting 157,807 workers at a pace of 882 per day — compared to 674 per day across all of 2025. This week’s entries include Oracle cutting 500 employees in Romania on June 25, Culture Amp trimming 70 workers — 9% of its staff — in its third layoff round in three years, and Elastic announcing 280 job cuts, or 7% of its workforce, citing AI transformation of the search and analytics market. CompanyCam and customer-data startup Amperity conducted reductions. The 2025 full-year total reached 245,953 workers across 783 events.
Sources: TrueUp Layoffs Tracker TechCrunch Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
Lucid Motors New CEO Cuts 18% of Workforce and Eliminates COO Role in Company Overhaul
Lucid Motors CEO Silvio Napoli cut 18% of the company’s workforce on June 22 — approximately 1,500 employees — the company’s second mass layoff in four months, following an earlier 12% reduction in 2026. Napoli said the cuts are designed to “simplify the company, sharpen execution, and position Lucid to become more competitive over time.” The restructuring also eliminates the second production shift at Lucid’s Casa Grande, Arizona factory and removes the chief operating officer role entirely; Marc Winterhoff, who served as interim CEO for more than a year before Napoli’s appointment, departed the company. Lucid said the workforce reduction will generate annualized savings of approximately $158 million.
Sources: TechCrunch CNBC Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
Engineering Roles Prove Most Resilient in Tech Downturn, Comprising 55% of New Hires in 2025
New data from venture firm SignalFire suggests AI fears about engineering job losses may be overstated: engineering roles declined 11% at large tech companies versus 2019 levels, while total hiring at those companies dropped 25%, TechCrunch reported June 24. Engineers comprised 55% of all new hires at major tech companies in 2025, up from 46% in 2019 — meaning companies are disproportionately protecting engineering headcount even as they cut other functions. TechCrunch attributed the trend to a Jevons paradox effect, where AI-driven efficiency gains increase demand for engineers rather than reduce it. The most sought-after capabilities in 2026 include AI-native development, data engineering, cloud infrastructure, and agent and model development.
Sources: TechCrunch Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
Oracle Confirms 21,000 Job Cuts Over Past Year as AI Infrastructure Spending Targets $70 Billion
Oracle’s global workforce fell to 141,000 employees as of May 31, 2026, down from approximately 162,000 a year earlier — a reduction of about 21,000 workers, or 13% of its headcount, CNBC reported June 23. The company spent $1.84 billion on severance and exit costs tied to the restructuring. Oracle stated in a regulatory filing that its “adoption and deployment of AI technologies across our operations have resulted, and may continue to result, in reductions to our workforce.” The cuts come as Oracle targets $70 billion in capital investment for AI infrastructure and data centers in fiscal 2026, supporting customers including OpenAI.
Sources: CNBC Technology Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
LinkedIn: 93% of Talent Professionals Plan to Expand AI Use in Recruiting as Candidate Competition Doubles
Recruiters’ use of AI is accelerating: 93% of talent professionals plan to increase their AI use in 2026, up from 67% in 2025, according to LinkedIn’s 2026 Talent Velocity Advantage Report. Among those already using AI in hiring, 59% say it helps identify candidates they would not have found otherwise, and two-thirds plan to use AI for pre-screening interviews. Meanwhile, competition for jobs has intensified — LinkedIn data shows U.S. applications per open position have doubled since spring 2022, even as 52% of professionals globally say they are currently looking for a new role. The report identifies psychological safety as the biggest differentiator among high-performing recruiting organizations.
Sources: LinkedIn Talent Solutions LinkedIn Talent Blog Share ↗ ✉︎ Email 💬 Text
Curated by JD · samwise.agency
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