# 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.
- Title: AT&T cuts deep to remake itself for AI · WIRED | Shortify
- Summary: 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…
- Keywords: at&t, artificial intelligence, job cuts, telecommunications, automation, copper network, fiber internet, workforce reduction, cuts, deep, remake, itself
- Source: WIRED — https://wired.com/story/atandt-is-automating-away-its-old-telecom-empire
- Author: Paresh Dave
- Published: 2026-09-23T10:15:00+00:00
- Read time: 2 min
- Topics: at&t, artificial intelligence, job cuts, telecommunications, automation, copper network, fiber internet, workforce reduction
## 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.
## Key takeaway

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.