Wix laying off about 20% of its workforce. CEO cites AI, exchange rates in announcing cut

Wix has decided that 20% of its workforce is, to use the technical term, surplus to requirements. CEO Avishai Abrahami, in a move that redefines 'brutal honesty,' blamed the 'fast evolution of AI capabilities' — as if the software just evolved on its own, like a particularly hungry Pokemon — and exchange rate fluctuations. Because nothing says 'strategic business decision' like blaming your 700-or-so imminent redundancies on the fact that the dollar is a bit strong. It's a neat trick: invoke technology that your own company probably doesn't even use effectively yet, and pair it with a currency nobody understands, and suddenly 20% of your staff are the problem.

Abrahami's announcement is a masterclass in corporate deflection. The 'fast evolution of AI' is a convenient scapegoat — sure, AI is getting better, but it's not exactly replacing web designers en masse this afternoon. Meanwhile, the exchange rate whinge is the oldest trick in the book: blame the macroeconomy for a decision you were going to make anyway. The real story is that Wix, like every other tech firm waking up from the ZIRP hangover, is trimming fat. But instead of 'we over-hired,' we get 'AI did it.' Because that's less embarrassing, apparently.

We've seen this script before. It's the same playbook Meta, Microsoft, and Salesforce used: blame the technology boogeyman, slash headcount, and hope shareholders applaud. And they will. The 'fast evolution of AI' is now the universal excuse for anything from layoffs to a delayed quarterly report. Meanwhile, the laid-off workers get to compete with the very AI that supposedly made them redundant — good luck. At least they have the exchange rate volatility to keep them company in the job queue.