Amid growing chatter around job cuts at leading consulting firm McKinsey & Company, Paytm Founder and CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma took a satirical swipe, pointing to the rising influence of artificial intelligence. Sharing a snippet from a Financial Times article that claimed McKinsey had reduced its global workforce by over 5,000 in the past 18 months, Sharma posted on X (formerly Twitter), “There is a new consultant in town. The answer is: ChatGPT.”

The remark quickly struck a chord, capturing anxieties about generative AI’s potential to disrupt white-collar professions—particularly industries like management consulting that have long been seen as insulated from automation.

However, McKinsey & Company has since issued a formal clarification, rejecting the mass layoff narrative. Speaking to People Matters, the firm stated that the decline in headcount—from around 45,000 at the end of 2023 to approximately 40,000 as of mid-2025—was not due to large-scale layoffs but rather standard attrition and performance-related exits.

“The recent drop in headcount was not the result of mass layoffs, but rather a combination of natural attrition and our standard performance management processes,” a McKinsey spokesperson explained.

While some reports labelled the change as one of the biggest workforce reductions in the firm’s history, McKinsey pushed back, emphasising that such characterisations fail to account for routine HR practices and strategic workforce planning.

The episode has ignited broader debate about the consulting industry’s future. As client needs evolve and digital transformation accelerates, firms are under pressure to deliver faster, tech-integrated insights. Tools like ChatGPT and other AI-driven platforms are already beginning to reshape how strategic advice is delivered, prompting firms to rethink their operating models.

Sharma’s tongue-in-cheek remark resonates with the growing belief in tech circles that generative AI is not just a productivity tool, but a potential disruptor of legacy knowledge industries—including consulting, legal services, and financial advisory.

Interestingly, Paytm itself has undergone recent restructuring. In June 2024, the fintech firm laid off an undisclosed number of employees, following the Reserve Bank of India’s regulatory action against Paytm Payments Bank. Earlier, in the March 2024 quarter, Paytm’s sales team shrank by about 3,500 employees, dropping to 36,521, reflecting the operational impact of the RBI’s restrictions.