KPMG to cut 10 pc of US audit partners amid global AI-driven layoffs

KPMG plans to cut 10 per cent of its US audit partners after an early retirement push fell short, joining a broader wave of global layoffs as companies restructure and increasingly adopt artificial intelligence-driven operations.

Hyderabad: Joining a series of multinational companies’ layoffs, KPMG, one of the Big Four accounting firms, has announced plans to cut about 10 percent of its US audit partners. The move comes after the company’s request to senior partners to retire early did not yield desired results.

Nearly 100 partners are leaving the Big Four accounting firm, some of whom volunteered to retire early, according to The Wall Street Journal report.

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The report, citing KPMG, said the cuts were aimed at better aligning the number of partners with the size of the audit business, as opposed to addressing individual poor performance.

“This action is connected to a multiyear strategy to align the size, shape and skills of our team to the power of our audit platform to best serve our clients and protect the capital markets,” the KPMG said.

The KPMG’s audit and assurance division comprises around 1,200 partners and managing directors, based on the company’s transparency report.

Nearly 80,000 jobs have already been cut globally in the first quarter of 2026 as the companies are increasingly shifting towards artificial intelligence that is replacing the workforce.

Largest layoffs have come from Oracle, a multinational technology company, which reduced its global workforce by 30,000, including around 12,000 jobs in India. The layoffs, according to the company, are part of organisation restructuring amid focus on its cloud and AI infrastructure business.

As part of its restructuring and AI-focus, Amazon has also announced a cut in 16,000 jobs, which impacted the company’s robotic division. This was the second such mass layoffs since October last, when the company reduced staff by 14,000.