Dow is to cut around 4500 jobs, about 13% of its global workforce. The chemical behemoth said it expects to reduce its ongoing costs by at least $2 billion by 2028 by boosting efficiency, cutting costs and restructuring. Dow at the same time said it would invest in artificial intelligence (AI) and automation to boost growth and productivity.

Despite the emphasis on AI, the move reflects wider market trends, especially sluggish growth in the chemicals sector and a squeeze on competitiveness, according to analysts. In January 2025, Dow had announced it would lay off 1500 workers to save $1 billion in annual costs, owing to a slower-than-expected economic recovery. Then, in July, the company said it would shut down three plants in Europe: an ethylene cracker and chlor-alkali plant in Germany, and a siloxanes plant in the UK.

The shutdowns were slated to begin in mid-2026 and be completed by the end of 2027. It is not clear how many of the 4500 job cuts were already accounted for in these previous announcements, or the geographical split.

‘The strategy for Dow seems to have changed to cash improvement,’ says Richard Carter, an independent consultant for the chemicals sector and ex-senior manager at BASF. ‘Cost reductions have come into focus because there is little or no growth.’ Last May, Dow also sold a stake in its infrastructure on the US Gulf Coast to Macquarie Asset Management for up to $3 billion.

You have to grow the business. AI doesn’t grow the business

Carter views the job cuts as ‘absolutely essential’ because Dow is not going to get the growth in the market that it had expected. ‘I foresee massive job losses in the chemical and petrochemical industry, in particular for administration, sales and finance, where many things I did as a junior and then senior manager no will longer exist because of AI.’

The Dow move must be seen in the context of a prolonged industrial downturn. What stands out is that Dow framed job cuts around AI and automation, according to Fan Li, an AI and digital consultant. He assists chemical companies in AI adoption, particularly for R&D, and previously worked for DuPont for 11 years. ‘A lot of the chemical companies have made huge investments in AI and now they are finding ways to capitalise on that,’ says Li.

Individual chemists or engineers should use AI to make themselves more productive, more valuable

Carter, however, says that there will be little competitive advantage in AI as all companies will take similar steps. ‘Dow has given up its ambition to become a global player, because it is not present in Asia–Pacific in a significant way and it is withdrawing from Europe,’ says Carter. ‘You have to grow the business. AI doesn’t grow the business.’

Others agree that the job cuts are part of a wider malaise. ‘How significant increased AI adoption and automation are in these announced job cuts is not clear. It is plausible that increased use of AI and automation will eliminate specific tasks, although it may also require new workforce skills and positions,’ notes Philip Shapira, a professor of innovation management and policy at the University of Manchester, UK, who has written about AI in manufacturing.

‘It is also likely that there are other underlying structural factors in play, including changes in demand and adjusting to high energy costs and a competitive chemicals marketplace,’ he adds.

Li recalls that he went through something similar at DuPont during a downturn, with coworkers losing jobs, but subsequently finding new employment. ‘For individual chemists or engineers, they should use AI to make themselves more productive, more valuable,’ he advises.