Signal Of the third who cut workers because of AI, 57% now question that decision

Summary

About one-third of the leaders in Deloitte's 2026 survey said they had exited workers because of AI. Of that group, 57% now say they have come to doubt the decision. Deloitte uses the finding to caution against treating AI purely as a substitute for people when building capability and capacity. It cites a financial technology firm that, a year after saying its chatbot could replace 700 service representatives, began rehiring people to work alongside the AI. The broader lesson is that combining machine speed with human strengths such as empathy may deliver better outcomes than wholesale replacement.