Klarna's AI Gamble Falls Short: Company Rehires Humans After $40B Valuation Drop

In 2022, Klarna, a popular Swedish fintech company, replaced 700 employees with AI to save money and speed things up. But by 2025, they realized it was a mistake. The AI couldn’t handle customer service well, and people were unhappy with the support they were getting.

Because of this, Klarna's value dropped from $45.6 billion to just $6.7 billion. Their plan to launch shares in the U.S. stock market was also put on hold.

Now, Klarna is hiring humans again especially for roles that need real communication, empathy, and problem-solving. They’re offering flexible remote jobs for students and people in rural areas.

The company has learned a big lesson: technology is helpful, but it can’t replace the human touch especially when it comes to understanding people.