AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile should pay attention: a telco is about to cut more than 40,000 jobs because of AI

While artificial intelligence makes some folks filthy rich, it also makes some extremely worried they'll lose their jobs. And for some 40,000 – or more! – employees of a certain telecom company, the latter option might just become reality in the coming years.

The Financial Times is casting a light on BT Group – the major telecommunications company based in the United Kingdom, which provides a wide range of services including broadband, mobile, fixed-line, and digital television. BT Group operates in both consumer and business markets and also offers network infrastructure services through its Openreach division, which manages much of the UK's broadband and telephone network. In recent years, the company has focused on modernizing its operations, investing in fiber and 5G networks, and implementing cost-cutting measures to remain competitive in a rapidly evolving industry.



At the end of 2023, the company was reported to have almost 99,000 employees. Soon, they could be 50,000 or so – major job cuts are expected. The FT report quotes BT Group Chief Executive Allison Kirkby who says that advances in AI could further deepen the job cuts under way at the British telecoms company.

Kirkby said the company's current goal to eliminate over 40,000 jobs and reduce costs by £3 billion (\$4 billion) by 2030 might not fully capture how much more artificial intelligence could help streamline operations.

Kirkby noted that as BT continues to explore what artificial intelligence can offer, there may be a chance for the company to become even smaller by 2030.

In 2023, BT announced plans to cut up to 55,000 jobs, including contractors, as part of a broader effort to streamline operations. The company's former CEO, Philip Jansen, had emphasized the goal of operating with a leaner workforce and a much lower cost base by the end of the decade. Since taking over leadership, Kirkby has also indicated that BT could consider spinning off Openreach, its network infrastructure division, if the market continues to undervalue the business. Growth at Openreach helped balance out weaker performance in BT's business and consumer segments, where traditional voice services and handset sales continued to decline.

Will AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile take notes? I'm far from the thought that the big three US telcos are not looking for ways to implement AI in their day-to-day operations – and they're alreadydoing it – what's more, I'm sure massive job cuts will happen at a point in time. The US telcos just need to come up with a reasonably sane chatbot assistant and it'll do the trick.

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