As thousands of employees continue to lose jobs across the technology industry, Palantir Technologies Chief Technology Officer Shyam Sankar has pushed back against growing fears that artificial intelligence will wipe out large sections of the workforce.
His comments come at a time when tech layoffs in 2026 are increasing across Silicon Valley, with companies increasingly using AI, automation and efficiency drives to justify restructuring teams and cutting jobs. The latest cuts came from Meta, where roughly 8,000 employees were reportedly laid off globally, and Intuit, which is cutting around 3,000 jobs as part of restructuring effort.
Palantir CTO @ssankar on AI layoffs:
— Jawwwn (@jawwwn_) May 20, 2026
“We’re listening too much to the inventors of AI.”
“I know that’s appealing. They’re geniuses.”
“We need to be listening to the frontline factory workers using AI saying, ‘Wow, I was able to add a third shift. I was able to hire more… https://t.co/mE9rZRCOJk pic.twitter.com/RToIoUebSV
Speaking to Fox News, Sankar said many workers are becoming anxious because influential figures in the AI industry continue to predict mass job losses. “I think they’re deeply fearful and worried about whether they’re going to have a job. Yeah, well, and the reason they’re afraid of that is because all these smart people keep saying that,” he said.
“So there are so many smart people, and they are smart, and they are saying, oh my God, you know, there’s going to be no more radiologists because, you know, AI can read x-rays better than a radiologist can, and there’s going to be no more software engineers because AI can program better than a software engineer can.” “These people are wrong,” Sankar added.
‘We are listening too much to the inventors of AI’
Sankar argued that the discussion around AI has become too focused on predictions from the creators of the technology rather than workers who are already using AI tools in practical settings. “We’re listening too much to the inventors of AI,” he told Fox News. “I know that’s appealing. They’re geniuses.”
According to Sankar, workers on the ground are using AI to improve productivity and expand operations rather than replace human jobs.
“We need to be listening to the frontline factory workers using AI saying, ‘Wow, I was able to add a third shift. I was able to hire more workers,’” he said.
He also cited healthcare workers as an example of how AI can support employees instead of replacing them. “Or the ICU nurse who says, ‘I was able to spend more time with my patients and ensure they don’t code during a shift change now,’” Sankar said.
AI restructuring and pandemic over-hiring fuel job cuts
According to Layoffs.fyi, more than 111,173 tech employees have already lost their jobs across 147 companies this year. The biggest reason companies are giving for the latest wave of layoffs is AI-driven restructuring. Businesses are trying to streamline operations while reorganising teams around AI-assisted systems and automation tools.
Another major factor behind the continued layoffs is the aggressive hiring wave during the Covid-era tech boom between 2020 and 2022, when companies rapidly expanded as digital demand surged worldwide.
However, as growth slowed and investors pushed for profitability, many firms began reducing headcount. Industry reports throughout 2026 have repeatedly pointed to “past over-hiring” as one of the central reasons behind the current wave of layoffs, especially across big tech and consumer internet companies.