Barclays cutting 5,000 jobs as it increases reliance on AI

Barclays is cutting its staff by around 5,000 as it introduces more artificial intelligence (AI) into its work processes. The banking group said 1,000 posts had already been closed and it expects a further reduction of 4,000 to be complete by the end of this year. The cuts amount to 5% of its global workforce with most of them among operational and functional roles. Barclays said the changes were the result of an ongoing modernisation plan, with the use of AI being the icing on the cake of its strategy. The banking group is reaching the end of a three year cost-cutting programme focused primarily on its UK retail banking arm, although the investment banking division is also affected.