Artificial intelligence is increasingly being used to influence who loses their job at large US companies, with a July 2026 survey finding that 59% of managers use AI in layoff decisions. More strikingly, 43% of those managers said they had allowed an AI system to finalise a layoff decision without human review.
The figures come from a survey conducted by ResumeTemplates of 1,000 managers at US companies with more than 500 employees. The findings offer a glimpse into how quickly AI has moved from assisting workplace decisions to potentially determining the fate of employees, even as questions remain about oversight, bias and who is ultimately accountable when the technology gets it wrong.
