How Safe Are AI Jobs? 66% of India’s AI Professionals Fear Layoffs

Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly becoming an integral part of the modern workplace. While it is creating new jobs and roles, it is also transforming many existing positions. Amid this shift, professionals working directly in the AI industry are increasingly concerned about their own job security.

According to a new survey by anonymous professional networking platform Blind, AI and machine learning (AI/ML) professionals in India are among the employee groups most concerned about potential layoffs in the coming months.

The survey, conducted among 1,552 professionals in India in July 2026, found that 66% of AI/ML employees expect layoffs or significant headcount reductions in their teams within the next three to six months. AI professionals ranked among the most concerned groups, with only sales and marketing professionals reporting higher levels of concern at 68%.

The findings challenge the common assumption that moving into an AI-related career automatically offers greater job security. Companies are rapidly adopting AI and investing heavily in automation, prompting many professionals to develop new skills and transition into AI-focused roles. However, the survey suggests that employees working on AI products and models may feel nearly as vulnerable as workers whose roles are widely expected to be affected by automation.

Product and Design Teams Also Face Growing Layoff Concerns

Employees working in Product and Design Teams also reported significant concerns about potential layoffs. Around 65% of respondents in these teams said they expected layoffs or substantial headcount reductions over the next few months.

Engineering professionals, by comparison, expressed relatively lower levels of immediate concern. Although engineering is often considered one of the job categories that could face significant disruption from generative AI, only 24% of engineers said layoffs in their teams were “very likely.”

Overall, 58% of engineering professionals were classified as being in the survey’s “At-Risk” category, which was below the overall average.

Employees in Data and Analytics Teams appeared to have the highest level of confidence in their job security. Only 51% considered their teams to be at risk, while around 40% said layoffs were unlikely. This was the most positive confidence figure among all the job functions surveyed.

The findings suggest that while AI is already automating certain aspects of software development and data analysis, professionals working in these areas currently perceive themselves as relatively safer than those directly involved in developing AI models and products.

Major Tech Companies Show Significant Differences in Job Security Concerns

The survey also revealed considerable differences in how employees perceive job security across companies.

Among major technology companies, Salesforce employees reported the highest level of concern, with 81% expecting layoffs or significant headcount reductions. This was followed by Oracle at 80%, Uber at 77% and PayPal at 75%.

Employees at Indian software companies appeared considerably more confident. At Zoho, only 9% of surveyed employees expected layoffs, while Freshworks recorded an at-risk sentiment of 44%.

According to Blind, employees at enterprise software and payments companies reported some of the highest levels of perceived job risk. In contrast, employees at Indian SaaS companies generally expressed greater confidence in workforce stability.

Hiring Freezes and Budget Cuts Seen as Early Warning Signs

Another key finding from the survey was how employees identify potential layoffs. Many respondents said their concerns do not begin only after an official layoff announcement. Instead, they pay attention to organisational changes that often appear before workforce reductions.

Among employees who expected layoffs, 27% identified hiring freezes as the biggest warning sign, while 24% pointed to cuts in budgets or headcount targets as indicators of potential job losses.

Other warning signs included project cancellations, an increase in Performance Improvement Plans (PIPs) and bench policies, all of which were viewed as possible indicators of workforce reductions.

Interestingly, only 9% of at-risk employees said an official layoff announcement was the primary reason they expected to lose their jobs.

The survey suggests that employees are increasingly assessing their job security by looking beyond formal layoff announcements and monitoring indirect signals such as hiring activity, budget changes, project pipelines and workforce policies.

Overall, the findings highlight a changing perception of AI careers. Working in the AI industry is no longer automatically seen as a guarantee of greater job security, even as companies continue to increase their investments in artificial intelligence.