---
title: "Cloudflare: the AI paradox, or when infrastructure costs more than salaries — Marsanne Studio AI watch"
description: "Cloudflare is cutting 20% of its workforce, citing automation through internal AI amid soaring infrastructure costs."
url: "https://marsanne.studio/en/ai-watch/cloudflare-the-ai-paradox-or-when-infrastructure-costs-more-than-d5c299/"
lang: "en"
---

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Analysis · 11 May 2026

# Cloudflare: the AI paradox, or when infrastructure costs more than salaries

Original title, in French: “Cloudflare : Le paradoxe de l'IA ou quand l'infrastructure coûte plus cher que les salaires”

**Publication**

ZDNet France (France)

**Author**

Unsigned

**Published on**

11 May 2026 · read in the page structured data · updated on 2 September 2026

## Summary

Cloudflare has announced layoffs affecting around 20% of its workforce, a decision management justifies by greater efficiency from internal AI tools able to automate tasks that were previously manual. The company faces soaring AI-related infrastructure costs (servers, GPUs), while its revenue growth, although solid (30% forecast for Q2, compared with 33.5% in the previous quarter), has disappointed the markets. The article compares this move with those of other companies such as Block and Atlassian, and quotes Sam Altman, head of OpenAI, who warns against AI being used as a pretext for job cuts already planned for other reasons.

Summary based on the full text of the article.

[Read the article on ZDNet France →](https://www.zdnet.fr/actualites/cloudflare-le-paradoxe-de-lia-ou-quand-linfrastructure-coute-plus-cher-que-les-salaires-494854.htm)

## Figures cited

-   20 %
    
    Share of Cloudflare's workforce announced as leaving
    
    Cloudflare, 2026
    
    > « Environ 20 % des collaborateurs vont quitter l'entreprise. »
    
-   30 %
    
    Revenue growth forecast by Cloudflare for the second quarter
    
    Cloudflare, Q2
    
    > « Si l'entreprise prévoit une augmentation de son revenu de 30 % pour le deuxième trimestre, ce chiffre marque un ralentissement par rapport aux 33,5 % enregistrés au trimestre précédent. »
    
-   33.5 %
    
    Cloudflare's revenue growth in the previous quarter
    
    Cloudflare, previous quarter
    
    > « Si l'entreprise prévoit une augmentation de son revenu de 30 % pour le deuxième trimestre, ce chiffre marque un ralentissement par rapport aux 33,5 % enregistrés au trimestre précédent. »
    

## Classification

**Country**

United States

**Company size**

Large companies

**Industries**

Software vendors, IT services companies, telecoms

**Companies**

Atlassian (cited), Cloudflare (deploys AI), OpenAI (cited), Block (cited)

**Keywords**

layoffs, automation, infrastructure costs, tech jobs, internal artificial intelligence

Entry written by Marsanne Studio from the cited article, with the help of an AI model (claude-sonnet-5). The rights to the article and its illustrations belong to ZDNet France. Entry translated from French by Claude Sonnet 5.5.