Oracle plans another wave of workforce reductions this month as it struggles to balance massive AI infrastructure borrowing against Wall Street profitability demands, according to internal documents and sources familiar with the matter.
Some teams could see layoffs in the double digits. Managers received instructions to submit lists of affected workers, with payroll reductions targeted before the second quarter begins September 1. Oracle declined to comment.
This round follows earlier cuts in the 2026 fiscal year that eliminated roughly 21,000 positions, a 13% workforce decline through May 31. The company now employs approximately 141,000 people.
Meanwhile, the AI buildout has pushed Oracle deep into debt. The company poured $55.7 billion into infrastructure last fiscal year, spending $23.7 billion more in cash than it generated. To fund the expansion, Oracle raised $43 billion through debt and another $5 billion from stock sales. Leadership expects to raise an additional $40 billion in the current fiscal year through a combination of debt and equity.
Revenue climbed 17% during the latest fiscal year as cloud infrastructure sales surged 77%, powered by exploding AI computing demand. But that growth forced a strategic shift for a company historically built on database software.
As a result, Oracle faces a hard reality. Its stock has fallen nearly 26% this year, driven partly by broader investor anxiety about whether AI will replace traditional software tools. Chairman Larry Ellison dismissed those concerns during a March earnings call, arguing the so-called SaaSpocalypse would hurt competitors, not Oracle.
The layoffs underscore a central tension in the AI boom. Even winners must cut costs somewhere.
