From WIRED · Paresh Dave · · 2m
AT&T cuts deep to remake itself for AI
The telecom giant is shedding thousands of jobs and shutting down its copper network to become a leaner, AI-powered company.
In brief
The telecom giant is shedding thousands of jobs and shutting down its copper network to become a leaner, AI-powered company. AT&T is laying off thousands of workers and retiring its energy-intensive copper network as it automates operations and shifts to fiber and wireless services for the AI era. Originally reported…
AT&T plans more layoffs for AI era
AT&T has already cut more than half its workforce over the past decade and says it will continue laying off staff as it prepares for artificial intelligence.
The numbers behind the cuts
AT&T chief technology officer Jeremy Legg says the company will not have the same headcount in five years. Last year it shed eight thousand people.
“We're not going to have the same headcount in five years as we do today.”
Target workforce could hit eighty five thousand
If AT&T continues cutting at last year's pace, its workforce could approach eighty five thousand employees by twenty thirty, according to a person familiar with the matter.
CEO wants a dramatically different company
AT&T CEO John Stankey said at a Goldman Sachs conference this month that by the end of the decade, AT&T wants to be seen as dramatically different with fantastic fiber and kickass wireless.
“dramatically different company with a fantastic fiber internet service and kickass wireless network”
AI automating manual work across operations
AT&T is using AI for customer service, finding cell tower locations, identifying maintenance issues, and adjusting network settings during extreme weather.
Cloud software replacing physical hardware
Starting next year, AT&T will replace physical hardware at thousands of central hubs with cloud software from Israeli startup DriveNets, allowing remote adjustments and eliminating middle management roles.
Shutting down energy-hungry copper network
AT&T is decommissioning its copper wire network that powered landlines and DSL. By year end, it expects to no longer offer copper in more than eighty five percent of its footprint.
Copper shutdown saves massive power
Since twenty twenty four, shifting away from copper has saved AT&T six hundred sixty thousand megawatt-hours of electricity, enough to power about sixty five thousand homes.
New jobs will emerge for AI oversight
AT&T expects to continue hiring for different roles even as it shrinks overall. The company will need people to develop and govern AI agents and maintain fiber lines.
What matters most
AT&T is laying off thousands of workers and retiring its energy-intensive copper network as it automates operations and shifts to fiber and wireless services for the AI era.
