Centrica just cut 1,300 jobs. The CEO says customers prefer chatbots to humans.

Centrica just axed 1,300 roles across British Gas.

The CEO says it's not AI driving the cuts. It's "changing customer behaviour."

90% of customers now start digitally. Call volume dropped 20%.

The contradiction is the story.

When your CEO says "AI isn't the reason" while announcing 1,300 job cuts because customers prefer chatbots, you're watching the playbook in real time.

The company calls it a "technology-led transformation programme." The union calls it human labor surrendered to automation.

Both are right.

Audit your customer service workforce today.

If your call volume is dropping, your headcount is next. The math doesn't care what your CEO calls it.

SOURCE: https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/jul/23/customers-prefer-ai-chatbots-says-chris-oshea-british-gas-centrica-boss
VERIFIED: The Guardian, Reuters, LayoffHedge, Computing.co.uk
SIGNAL: First major UK utility explicitly linking AI chatbot adoption to workforce reduction. The "customer preference" framing is the new corporate cover for automation-driven layoffs.