The White House's own science advisor says companies are blaming AI for layoffs they would have done anyway because it plays better in the press. Early in 2026, 7 percent of layoffs cited AI. By summer, 54 percent did. The count hit 205,000 workers in under eight months.
Michael Kratsios told the Moonshots podcast on August 7 that companies assign layoffs to AI because the narrative is more appealing to investors and the public. Peter Diamandis named the incentive directly: stock prices go up when companies produce more revenue with fewer people. The AI label is not a cause. It is a stock play.
"Companies are 'AI-washing' layoffs, blaming AI for job cuts already planned because investor markets reward the narrative." [SOURCE ↗]
THE CLAIM. companies are blaming AI for job cuts that were already planned because investor markets reward the narrative, per the White House's own science advisor.
THE CHECK. Michael Kratsios, White House Science and Technology Advisor, said on the Moonshots podcast on August 7, 2026, that companies that would have done layoffs anyway assign them to AI because it plays better in the press. Peter Diamandis responded that stock prices go up when companies produce more revenue with fewer people. ResumePulse tracked 205,000 AI-attributed layoffs through August 2026, matching the full-year 2025 total in under eight months. Early in 2026, only 7 percent of layoff events cited AI. By summer, 54 percent did. AI became the leading stated reason for corporate job cuts for the first time in March and April 2026. Microsoft eliminated 4,800 roles. Meta cut 8,000 jobs and moved 7,000 to AI divisions.
THE TWIST. the gap between what was claimed (AI replaced these workers) and what is true (the cuts were planned, the AI label is a market signal) is not just a corporate communications problem. It is distorting the public understanding of what AI actually does to employment, in both directions.
Michael Kratsios is not a labor activist. He is the White House Science and Technology Advisor in a pro-business administration. When he says companies blame AI for layoffs they would have done anyway because it plays better in the press, the source matters as much as the claim.
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