Standard Chartered CEO apologizes for calling some workers ‘lower value human capital’ in AI push

The baby boomer bank leader took to LinkedIn to admit that his words had unnerved some of his coworkers. “I have received a lot of support for the messages in my previous post but still get questions about my choice of words, which I know has caused upset to some colleagues,” Winters wrote. “For that I am sorry.”

The finance leader first made the controversial comments at an investor briefing in Hong Kong last Tuesday, saying: “[AI] is replacing, in some cases, lower value human capital with the financial capital and the investment capital we’re putting in.”

And while Winters had also added that the company is giving staffers “every opportunity to reposition” and reskill, labeling some workers as less valuable in the tech revolution quickly sparked criticism.

Winters doubled down on his AI comments in a LinkedIn post published last Friday, confirming that “back office” corporate function roles will be reduced by about 15% in the next four years—and that Standard Chartered is making an effort to move humans in “lower-value” jobs susceptible to automation into “higher-value” roles. 

Backlash to the CEO’s comments comes as the conversation on AI job displacement heats up. Major employers, including Amazon, Meta, Accenture, and UPS have all tied sweeping layoffs and reduced hiring to AI-driven work efficiencies.

Last year alone, around 55,000 roles were slashed in connection to the technology—and another 502,000 of jobs are expected to be lost for the same reason in 2026, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research.

Critics slam CEO’s stance on AI displacement—but company says it’s ‘what a responsible employer should do’ 

As it turns out, the CEO’s attempt to clarify his stance didn’t land, drawing hundreds of reactions to the post.

Some commenters called out the harm in automating roles deemed lesser than, with one user writing: “‘Taken out of context’ is the oldest deflection in the book. If you’re cutting 15% of your workforce, the ‘building skills for new opportunities’ line doesn’t land—it insults people’s intelligence.”

Others voiced their disappointment over his word choice, but appreciated his transparency on the issue. “This is a conversation every organisation will eventually have to face,” another person commented.

So Winters swooped in with another post explaining himself again. That same day, the CEO published the full transcript of his comments in an attempt to contextualize the situation. And this time, he acknowledged and apologized for the upset caused by his choice of words. 

In a comment to Fortune, a Standard Chartered representative highlighted Winters’ commitment to revamp the workforce into a skills-forward company. The business said it will also offer future opportunities for “higher skill, long-term employment” in and outside of the global bank.

“Standard Chartered has, for many years, invested actively in helping colleagues whose roles may be displaced by automation to build the skills needed for new opportunities within our organisation,” the representative said. “That is what a responsible employer should do, and our track record in supporting internal transitions is strong. We will continue to act responsibly in helping our people to succeed.”

The CEOs open about AI automation—despite the backlash

There is no shortage of companies cutting roles, decreasing headcounts, and slowing hiring in the face of the AI revolution. However, some who have been outspoken on automation were met with public backlash. 

In April last year, Duolingo cofounder and CEO Luis von Ahn posted an email on LinkedIn that was sent out to all employees, detailing his vision for the company to be “AI first.” That included phasing out contractors whose work could be automated, as well as restricting teams to hiring new workers only if the role couldn’t be done by AI. 

His comments were met with swift backlash, and just one week later, the CEO walked back the statement by adding “more context.” The cofounder said that Duolingo is helping its staffers “feel empowered and prepared to use the technology,” while adding that the tech won’t overtake the work of humans. 

“To be clear: I do not see AI as replacing what our employees do (we are in fact continuing to hire at the same speed as before),” von Ahn wrote on LinkedIn. “I see it as a tool to accelerate what we do, at the same or better level of quality. And the sooner we learn how to use it, and use it responsibly, the better off we will be in the long run.”

Klarna CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski has also been outspoken on the topic of AI automation. The millennial entrepreneur has said that “AI can already do all of the jobs that we, as humans, do.” 

In late 2023, his perspective was set into motion at the $6.4 billion fintech company when Klarna halted hiring; by letting natural attrition run its course, the company’s workforce shrunk by around 1,000 staffers by 2024, which reportedly saved the business around $10 million annually using AI for marketing needs, cutting back on lawyer time, and optimizing communications. 

Last year, the CEO even opted to send in an AI version of himself to announce the company’s third quarter results. Assertions like purposeful tech-driven headcount reductions are sure to draw scrutiny, but Siemiatkowski isn’t shying away from the topic like some of his peers. 

“I feel a lot of my tech bros are being slightly not to the point on this topic,” Siemiatkowski told Bloomberg in 2025. “I think there is a massive shift coming to knowledge work. And it’s not just in banking, it’s in society at large.”

And Marc Benioff, the CEO of the $148.5 billion computer software company Salesforce, hasn’t minced words on the topic either. 

The company cut at least 4,000 of its customer support roles for AI agents to pick up the work, and cited that when it comes to Salesforce’s business interactions, around “50% are with agents, 50% are with humans.” 

While onlookers may gawk at the idea of tech being their new coworkers, Benioff said this AI-human workforce is nothing dystopian: “This is reality, at least for me.”

“I was able to rebalance my headcount on my support,” Benioff said on The Logan Bartlett Show last year. “I’ve reduced it from 9,000 heads to about 5,000, because I need less heads.”