What our 2025 market pulse uncovered about the future of AI, people, and decision-making during economic volatility.
The Paradox of 2025
It’s one of the most contradictory signals in today’s economy:
Companies are laying off talent, tightening budgets, and preparing for what could be a prolonged downturn. And yet, they’re investing more aggressively in AI than ever before.
This isn’t speculation. It’s happening.
Meta, Google, Dell, Morgan Stanley, and even hospital systems are reducing human roles while expanding their AI footprints. AI, it seems, is not just surviving the downturn, it’s thriving because of it.
To understand this shift, we launched a market pulse combining:
- A survey of 500+ executives and decision-makers
- Signals from Reddit, industry blogs, analyst briefings
- Leadership commentary across sectors like finance, healthcare, tech, and retail
Here’s what we found.
AI Up. Headcount Down.
From our pulse:
- 63% of leaders say they’re accelerating AI investment
- 45% report layoffs or hiring freezes
This mirrors what we’re seeing in the headlines:
- Cisco cut 7% of staff while committing $1B to AI startups
- Google laid off over 10,000 people, just before investing $2B in Anthropic
- Dell and Meta both cited AI as the reason behind restructuring and layoffs
- Morgan Stanley cut 2,000 roles while rolling out AI co-pilots for financial advisors
The takeaway is clear:
AI isn’t displacing people later. It’s replacing parts of the org right now.
Why? Leaders see AI as the only scalable way to boost productivity without increasing headcount. One exec told us: “AI is how we grow without growing headcount.”
But here’s the problem: If you’re scaling decisions through AI, are you scaling trust? Are the systems grounded in real signals? Can they explain their actions?
The Tradeoff. What Gets Protected: AI or People?
From our pulse:
- 34% said they’d protect people first
- 31% said they’d protect AI systems
- When asked what to cut: 25% said people, 25% said AI
In short:
Leaders are divided. And this tradeoff is no longer theoretical.
Executives told us they’re not looking to protect “people vs. AI,” they’re trying to protect the synergy between the two:
- Teams that work alongside AI
- Roles that validate or guide AI decisions
- Systems that support human judgment
The CFO’s logic? Invest in AI that automates low-value work. Protect the people who can steer that system with context.
But here’s the catch:
50% of CFOs globally say they’ll cut AI programs that don’t show ROI within 12 months
So the race is on: build AI that drives real value fast—and keeps humans in the loop.
The Line We Won’t Cross
Even with the AI surge, leaders are setting boundaries:
- Terminations
- Ethical decisions
- Crisis response
These are staying human.
From our open ends:
“AI doesn’t carry blame. So it shouldn’t carry that kind of power.”
That’s not just sentiment—it’s policy:
- The proposed No Robot Bosses Act would ban AI-only hiring/firing
- NYC now requires audits for AI-driven recruitment
- Hospitals are facing nurse protests against AI-led clinical decisions
In short:
AI can recommend. But humans must still decide.
That means AI systems need built-in transparency, oversight, and explainability. Anything less erodes trust—from employees and customers alike.
The Bet: AI + Human Co-Pilots Win
So where are high-performing organizations placing their bets?
Not on AI vs. people. But on collaborative intelligence.
From our survey:
Over 70% of execs said they’d bet on both AI + people, but only if they’re integrated.
We’re seeing this play out:
- Morgan Stanley advisors use AI to prep faster, but make the final call
- Doctors use AI for second reads, but sign off on diagnoses
- GitHub Copilot helps write code, but developers guide architecture
AI is the engine. But people are the driver.
This is the moment to move from automation-first to decision-first. From AI that acts, to AI that understands.
Where Pearl-Plaza Fits: Grounded AI, Not Guesswork
At Pearl-Plaza, we believe the future of AI isn’t autonomy. It’s alignment.
That’s why our approach is rooted in:
- Integrated CX: Combining customer signals, operational data, and voice of employee into a single view
- Pearl-Plaza AI: Blending LLM + NLP for AI that predicts and understands
- Conversational Intelligence: Capturing real-time nuance and intent to fuel action
- Human-in-the-loop design: AI that augments teams, not replaces them
- AI-Driven Journey Insights: A real-time opportunity to understand your stakeholders at a much more valuable level.
In a world where automation is easy and trust is hard, grounding matters.
Because if your AI can’t explain itself, or align with how your people think, act, and decide, then it shouldn’t be making decisions on your behalf.
This isn’t about choosing AI over people. It’s about designing a future where both show up at their best.
And we’re here to help organizations do just that.
