Swedish Fintech Tried AI Over Humans—Now It’s Backtracking

Swedish fintech company Klarna is reversing course on its AI-first strategy, launching a major hiring drive after admitting its artificial intelligence agents weren’t delivering satisfactory results.

Two years ago, Klarna partnered with OpenAI and significantly reduced its workforce, betting that AI would boost efficiency and cut costs.

CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski, who once claimed AI could do “all the jobs that we, as humans do,” acknowledged that the quality of work done by AI agents was lacking and the company now needs the “human touch” back.

Klarna had halted hiring in 2023 and leaned heavily on generative AI for tasks like translation, art, and data analysis—reportedly saving $10 million in marketing expenses and replacing 700 customer service roles with AI.

Earlier this month, cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike announced it would cut 5% of its staff and automate those roles with AI. Duolingo also revealed plans to reduce its use of human contractors for work that AI can now perform.