Oracle Corporation has commenced a round of layoffs, according to two informed sources who confirmed the news to CNBC.
The sources, who requested anonymity due to the confidential nature of the discussions, indicated that the workforce reduction affects several thousand employees.
As of May 2025, Oracle's global workforce totaled 162,000 employees.
Oracle's stock has declined 27% this year, driven by investor concerns over competitive threats from generative AI models and the impact of infrastructure investments on the company's cash flow.
Oracle declined to comment on the matter.
While continuing to promote its flagship database business for storing and delivering enterprise information, Oracle has significantly increased capital expenditures to build data center infrastructure capable of handling artificial intelligence workloads.
In September, Oracle disclosed that its remaining performance obligations, a metric representing unrecognized contract revenue, surged 359% to $455 billion. This followed an agreement with OpenAI valued at over $300 billion. Weeks later, Oracle appointed executives Mike Sicilia and Clay Magouyrk to succeed Safra Catz as CEO.
Oracle has relied on the bond market to finance its expansion projects. In January, the company announced plans to raise $50 billion through debt and equity offerings. During an earnings call last month, Oracle executives stated there are no immediate plans for further bond issuance in 2026.
Analysts at TD Cowen Securities, led by Michael Elias, wrote in a January report that a workforce reduction of 20,000 to 30,000 employees could generate $8 billion to $10 billion in incremental free cash flow for the company.
Company executives have stated that investments in artificial intelligence will ultimately yield returns. "The demand for both GPU and CPU AI infrastructure continues to outstrip supply, which is clearly reflected in our $553 billion remaining performance obligations," Magouyrk said during the earnings call.
Business Insider first reported on Tuesday that Oracle had begun notifying employees about the layoffs.