On October 22, 2026, the major British bank Barclays announced it would cut about 5,000 jobs. The growing use of AI has been reported as one of the reasons.
The Barclays announcement
The announcement came with the bank's third-quarter results. The cuts amount to about 5 percent of its workforce.
At the same time, the chief executive, C.S. Venkatakrishnan, has said AI is not the only reason. He described AI as the icing on the cake; the main part, he explained, is simplifying the way work is done, along with investment in technology.
Things made fast, things made with time
Today, writing plus images can be made in an instant with AI. Quickly, in large numbers, at the same quality. For a company, this is a very important strength.
At the same time, I feel the meaning of things made with time has, if anything, become clearer. Someone listens, thinks, moves their hands, and turns it into a single painting. That time itself is held inside the work.
A hand-painted piece for the executive office
BUSINESS ART begins with listening to the business owner. The feelings you had when you founded the company, the words you hold dear, where you are heading next. I turn these into color plus form, and paint them as one original painting.
No two are the same. Standing in front of it, your staff plus your clients can sense what this company values. On days full of decisions, it reminds you why you do this work. That is the kind of piece I aim to paint.
Precisely because the way we work is changing so much, I think there is also a choice to entrust what you want to keep unchanged to a single painting made by hand.
Mermaid nao's BUSINESS ART is a one-of-a-kind original painting of what your business stands for. Each piece is delivered framed.
[References]
CNBC: Barclays to slash 5,000 jobs in AI efficiency push
Bloomberg: Barclays to Cut 5,000 Jobs as AI Drives Cost Reduction Effort
Yahoo Finance: Barclays to cut 5,000 jobs while handing work over to AI — Chief Executive says AI is icing on the cake
TechRepublic: Barclays Plans 5,000 Job Cuts as AI Boosts Productivity
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