Oracle is expanding its job-cutting programme as the technology giant faces mounting costs from its aggressive push into artificial intelligence infrastructure.
According to a regulatory filing cited by Bloomberg, Oracle now expects its 2026 restructuring programme to cost about $2.8 billion, with most of the expense linked to severance payments for employees affected by layoffs.
The company has already recorded around $2.1 billion in restructuring charges. The additional $700 million reflects further cost-cutting measures Oracle expects to undertake.
Oracle has been spending heavily on AI data centres for customers including OpenAI, putting pressure on its finances even as demand for cloud infrastructure remains strong.
The company has already cut thousands of jobs this year as it looks to preserve cash, while Business Insider reported last month that Oracle was preparing for another round of layoffs.
At the end of May, Oracle had around 49,000 employees in the US and about 92,000 overseas. Its total workforce was reportedly down by around 21,000 compared with a year earlier.
Separately, Oracle disclosed a new share-trading plan for Chairman Larry Ellison, who owns roughly 40% of the company.
The plan, adopted on June 22, allows Ellison to sell up to 50 million shares through October 24.
Oracle shares closed at $175.07 on June 22, valuing the 50-million-share block at about $8.75 billion. Since then, the stock has fallen around 16% through Friday’s close, according to Bloomberg.
Ellison has also been a major financial backer of his son David Ellison’s takeover of Paramount Global last year, as well as Paramount Skydance Corp.’s $110 billion bid for Warner Bros. Discovery Inc.
The disclosures come at a time when Oracle’s stock continues to draw support from its AI-related order backlog.
The company has recently highlighted strong bookings growth tied to cloud infrastructure demand, but investors are also weighing the rising costs of data centre expansion and the pressure those investments could place on near-term margins.
In short, Oracle’s AI ambitions are helping drive future growth expectations, but they are also forcing the company to make deeper cuts elsewhere in the business.
