SUSE to Cut About 10% of Staff, Citing Automation and AI
SUSE, the Germany-based Linux company, plans to cut about 10% of its roughly 1,900 staff, or around 190 jobs. The figures come from an internal memo from CEO Dirk-Peter van Leeuwen, reported by The Register on 2 November 2026. The memo says automation and AI are changing how software companies operate and that the need for some existing roles has fallen sharply. It does not say which roles or countries are affected. Staff who are losing their jobs are to be told by 4 November. The cuts follow a voluntary separation offer SUSE made in September. For business owners, the case shows a large company tying headcount directly to automation. It also shows how little the public announcement reveals about the work itself.
In short
- SUSE plans to cut about 10% of roughly 1,900 staff, around 190 jobs, according to a CEO memo reported by The Register.
- The memo links the cuts to automation and AI but does not say which roles or countries are affected.
- Affected staff are to be told by 4 November, after a voluntary separation offer in September.
- Business owners should first map routine tasks and hours before automating anything.
- Any reduction in roles must follow local notice, consultation and severance rules.
What happened
According to The Register, SUSE told its workforce in an internal memo on Monday 2 November 2026 that it will reduce its global workforce by about 10%. The Register's reporter saw the memo. SUSE employs more than 1,900 people, so the cut is roughly 190 jobs. The CEO, Dirk-Peter van Leeuwen, wrote that automation and AI are fundamentally shifting how software companies operate. He also said the need for some existing roles has greatly diminished. The memo does not name the roles or the countries affected. Staff are to be informed by 4 November, and employee representatives are to be named the following day, according to the same report. The Register also reported that SUSE has not published a statement about the cuts in its newsroom.
The cuts follow a voluntary separation and early retirement offer that SUSE made in September. The Register reported at the time that the offer was aimed at long-serving staff. SUSE described it as voluntary for both sides, with no set target. According to The Register, that offer did not attract enough takers, which led to the current round.
Why it matters for businesses that automate work
This is one of the first large software employers to link a headcount reduction directly to automation in its own internal communication. Many firms talk about efficiency. SUSE's memo names AI as the reason the current structure no longer fits. That gives other business leaders a clear signal of how a board or a parent owner may frame the same decision.
The memo gives no figures on how much work AI or tooling now performs, and it does not list the tasks that changed. The link between AI and these specific roles rests on the company's own account. Business owners who plan to automate should treat the announcement as a statement of direction, not as proof that a particular kind of job can be removed safely.
What changes for a business that automates work, in practice
The SUSE memo points to flatter reporting lines and less operational overhead. For a business of any size, the practical question is which routine tasks a person currently does by hand, and whether a system can take them over. Typical examples are copying data between systems, sending payment follow-ups, matching bank lines to invoices, and building weekly reports.
| Question | What the SUSE memo says | What is still open |
|---|---|---|
| How many people are affected | About 10%, roughly 190 of about 1,900 | Exact split by role and country |
| Why | Automation and AI, plus modern tooling | Which tasks changed, and by how much |
| When | Staff informed by 4 November | Timing for each country |
| Process | Voluntary offer first, then this round | Whether any further offers follow |
A practical first step is to list the routine tasks in your business, with the hours each one takes each week. Start with the work that follows fixed rules and uses data already in a system. Automation can run that work continuously, while a person checks exceptions, approves payments above a set limit and handles customers who need a judgement call. Automation does not fix a weak process. If the underlying steps are unclear or change often, a tool will repeat the confusion faster.
Any reduction in roles must follow the notice, consultation and severance rules of each country where you employ people, and should be agreed with the employee or checked with a lawyer.
What to watch next
- The 4 November notifications, and whether SUSE names the roles or countries affected.
- The company's fiscal year 2027 strategy, which SUSE is due to present to staff on 16 November, according to Shiftdelete.
- Reports on the Czech operation, where staff formed a union earlier in 2026, according to The Register.
- Reports on the owner. TheNextWeb reports that EQT, SUSE's owner, considered selling the company in March. That report does not say whether a sale is now under way.
The reporting so far does not establish how many of the cuts relate to automation as opposed to other changes. The next filings, statements and staff reports should show more.
Sources
How AiStaffo would automate this
For a business in this position, the first job is to map the routine work that currently sits with people: data entry between systems, payment follow-ups, reconciliations, billing and reports. AiStaffo would connect the systems where that work lives, such as accounting, billing and shared files, and set up AI workers to run the repeatable steps on a schedule. Each run would be logged so the owner can see what the worker did. People would still review exceptions, approve payments above agreed limits and decide which roles change and how. Book a free automation audit.
Questions people ask
How many jobs is SUSE cutting?
What reason does SUSE give for the job cuts?
When will affected SUSE staff find out?
Did SUSE try other options before these cuts?
Should a smaller business cut staff because of AI?
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