Telstra, Australia's largest telecommunications company, announced plans to shrink its workforce by 2030, citing 'AI efficiencies' in areas like customer service, software development, and network management. CEO Vicki Brady stated the company will 'embrace AI' and expects autonomous AI agents to work alongside staff soon, though not directly with customers for now.
Telstra expects to shrink workforce as it leans in ‘hard’ on AI — including in customer service
TelstraArtificial intelligence (AI)AustraliaBusiness
AI Summary
TL;DR: Key points with love ❤️Telstra, Australia's largest telecommunications company, announced plans to shrink its workforce by 2030, citing 'AI efficiencies' in areas like customer service, software development, and network management. CEO Vicki Brady stated the company will 'embrace AI' and expects autonomous AI agents to work alongside staff soon, though not directly with customers for now.
Trending- 1 December 2024: Telstra Group had over 31,000 full-time equivalent employees.
- 2 Early May 2025: Cybersecurity company CrowdStrike announced plans to cut 5% of its workforce after identifying AI efficiencies.
- 3 Last week (May 2025): Optus CEO Stephen Rue discussed AI's significant role in telecommunications.
- 4 Tuesday (May 27, 2025): Telstra's annual investor day, where the plans were announced and the Connected Future 30 strategy was launched.
- 5 Coming months: Telstra expects to be talking about agentic AI working alongside Telstra staff.
- 6 By 2030: Telstra expects its workforce to be smaller and aims to be in the top 25% of global enterprises in AI maturity.
- Expected reduction in Telstra's headcount by 2030
- Potential for job cuts in the telecommunications sector due to AI adoption
- Increased reliance on AI for customer service, software development, and IT operations
- Significant cost savings for Telstra
- Ongoing debate among analysts regarding the actual productivity gains from AI investments
What: Telstra, Australia's largest telecommunications company, expects to reduce its workforce by 2030 due to the integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and autonomous AI agents across various operations.
When: The announcement was made on Tuesday, May 27, 2025, at Telstra's annual investor day. Workforce reduction is expected by 2030. Agentic AI is expected to work alongside staff in the coming months. The 'Connected Future 30' strategy outlines the company's course for the next five years.
Where: Australia (Telstra's primary operational base).
Why: Telstra aims to achieve 'AI efficiencies,' revolutionize customer engagement, reduce operating costs (currently over $2 billion per annum in customer-facing activities), and fundamentally change how software development and IT are done. This is part of the company's 'Connected Future 30' strategy focused on cost discipline and efficiency.
How: Telstra plans to embrace AI, including generative AI (already deployed for tasks like summarizing customer calls) and agentic AI (autonomous agents), to automate tasks, improve efficiency, and potentially enable networks to self-fix or proactively identify issues.