Accounting software giant Intuit plans to lay off 1,800 employees—approximately 10% of its workforce—to reallocate resources towards the development of its AI capabilities.
The company has made no explicit mention of AI’s role in the layoffs. However, in a letter to employees, Intuit CEO Sasan Goodarzi emphasized the transformative power of AI.
“AI is igniting global innovation,” Goodarzi stated in his letter. “Companies that aren’t prepared to take advantage of this AI revolution will fall behind and, over time, will no longer exist.”
Goodarzi attributed over half of the layoffs to employee underperformance and commited to hire en equivalent number of workers to make up for the firings. These new hires will primarily be software engineers and experts in AI-driven digital platforms.
The company will also close two offices: one in the Canadian city of Edmonton and another in Boise, Idaho. It will also bolster its tech workforce in the US (Atlanta and New York), Canada (Toronto), India (Bangalore) and Israel (Tel Aviv).
Last year, Intuit incorporated an AI assistant (Intuit Assist) to QuickBooks, its flagship software product. The company hopes that, by increasing its AI capabilities, it will enhance its virtual assistant’s ability to deliver precise recommendations to customers.
Intuit Assist features natural language reporting and analytics tools, offering answers to questions like, “What is my income this year so far?” and “Who are my largest customers?”. It derives these insights from a company’s financial data.
Generative AI is significantly transforming the financial services industry by automating functions such as bookkeeping, accounting and data analysis. Analysts expect more moves like Intuit’s as businesses incorporate AI deeper into their operations.
Add comment