AI part of another tech layoff as Wix CEO announces 20% workforce cut

Israel-based web development company Wix is slashing roughly 20% of its workforce, CEO Avishai Abrahami announced in a post on X early Thursday morning, citing the "fast evolution of AI capabilities" and difficulties around currency exchange rates.

"We have witnessed the most significant shift in how companies are built since the invention of modern programming languages in the 1970s. This is not just about adopting new tools - it is about rewiring how companies are built, how they think, how they manage and how they operate," Abrahami wrote, saying that the company would move toward fewer layers of leadership to make faster decisions.

Abrahami said that as the Israeli shekel continues to strengthen against the U.S. dollar, the exchange rate also put a "structural pressure" on the company's ability to operate at its current scale.

Wix referred CNBC to Abrahami's post when asked for additional details on the layoffs.

The announcement sees Wix join a wave of tech companies making major headcount cuts, with many leaders citing artificial intelligence's role in automating some workloads.

February saw Block cut nearly 4,000 jobs, slashing nearly half its workforce, as CFO Amrita Ahuja said the company saw an opportunity to "move faster with smaller, highly talented teams using AI to automate more work."

Cisco cut 5% from its own ranks this month, with CEO Chuck Robbins emphasizing the need for a "rapid reallocation of resources" given the speed of the market. And just last week, Meta eliminated around 8,000 jobs, representing about 10% of its headcount.

Wix had 5,277 employees at the end of the first quarter, according to a company shareholder update from May. That would put Thursday's cuts at just over 1,000 affected individuals.

Shares of the Nasdaq-listed company traded flat following the news.