# Klarna resumes hiring human agents after AI-first customer service produced 'lower quality' Source: https://www.bankingnewsai.com/ai-incidents/klarna-2025-ai-customer-service-reversal Last updated: Oct 21, 2026 Klarna · Institution's own AI · severity 2 of 5 Klarna said in February 2024 that its OpenAI-powered assistant was handling two-thirds of customer-service chats, the equivalent work of 700 full-time agents. On 8 May 2025 chief executive Sebastian Siemiatkowski told Bloomberg that cost had been "a too predominant evaluation factor" and "what you end up having is lower quality", and that Klarna would recruit people so customers could always reach a human; a spokesperson confirmed a pilot of flexible human agents to CX Dive. The reversal was partial: Klarna told Fortune it was "very much still AI-first", and its 2025 annual report on Form 20-F says the assistant handled 80% of customer-service chats that year. No customer losses or regulatory action were reported. ## Key facts | | | | --- | --- | | Date | May 8, 2025 | | Institution | Klarna | | Country | Sweden | | AI system | Klarna AI assistant · Generative AI customer-service chatbot · vendor: OpenAI | | AI? | Described as AI by the institution or regulator — The institution, a regulator or a court called the system AI. | | Category | AI job-cut reversal (Institution's own AI) | | Status | Confirmed by the institution | | Severity | 2 of 5 — A policy reversal with limited, unquantified harm: the chief executive said cost-led automation had produced lower-quality service, but no customer losses, regulatory finding or redundancies tied to the reversal were reported. | ## What happened? On 27 February 2024 Klarna announced that its AI assistant, powered by OpenAI and live globally for one month, had held 2.3 million conversations, two-thirds of its customer-service chats, and was "doing the equivalent work of 700 full-time agents". The release said customers could still choose to interact with live agents. [1] On 8 May 2025 Bloomberg reported that Siemiatkowski said his pursuit of cost-cutting in customer service, fuelled by AI, had gone too far, and that he was planning a recruitment drive so customers would always have the option of speaking to a real person. He told Bloomberg: "As cost unfortunately seems to have been a too predominant evaluation factor when organizing this, what you end up having is lower quality," and "Really investing in the quality of the human support is the way of the future for us." [2][3][4] Klarna spokesperson Clare Nordstrom told CX Dive that customers should always have the option to speak with a human and that Klarna was running a pilot that brought in "highly educated students, professionals and entrepreneurs" as remote customer-service agents with competitive pay and full flexibility, an "Uber-type" setup in Siemiatkowski's words. Fortune reported that the company had two new freelance agents at that point. [3][4] The shift did not end AI-first customer service. A Klarna spokesperson told Fortune the company was keeping its policy of not replacing employees who leave, outside freelance customer-service hires, and that "we're very much still AI-first"; Nordstrom told CX Dive the chatbot still handled two-thirds of inquiries. Klarna's 2025 annual report on Form 20-F, filed in February 2026, states that the assistant handled 80% of customer-service chats in 2025 and did work equivalent to over 850 full-time agents. [3][4][5] ## Timeline - Feb 27, 2024 — Klarna announces its OpenAI-powered assistant handles two-thirds of customer-service chats, the equivalent work of 700 full-time agents. [1] - May 8, 2025 — Siemiatkowski tells Bloomberg cost-led AI customer service produced "lower quality" and Klarna will recruit human agents. [2][4] - May 9, 2025 — A Klarna spokesperson confirms a pilot of flexible remote human agents to CX Dive. [3] - Feb 26, 2026 — Klarna's 2025 Form 20-F reports the AI assistant handled 80% of customer-service chats in 2025. [5] ## What was the impact? - Customers: No quantified customer harm; the chief executive said service quality had been lower - Other: Partial reversal of an AI-first staffing policy: Klarna began recruiting a small number of flexible human agents while keeping the AI assistant as the main chat channel. [2][3][4] ## How did Klarna respond? Klarna presented the change as an evolution rather than a retreat. Spokesperson Clare Nordstrom told CX Dive: "AI gives us speed. Talent gives us empathy. Together, we can deliver service that's fast when it should be, and emphatic and personal when it needs to be." A spokesperson told Fortune: "we're very much still AI-first." [3][4] ## What was the outcome? Klarna added a human-agent pilot but kept AI as the default: its 2025 Form 20-F says the assistant handled 80% of customer-service chats in 2025 with no drop in consumer satisfaction according to internal surveys. No regulatory action connected to the change has been reported. [3][5] ## FAQ ### Did Klarna replace 700 customer-service workers with AI? Klarna said in February 2024 that its AI assistant did the equivalent work of 700 full-time agents; it described workload, not 700 dismissals. Fortune reported Klarna had stopped replacing staff who left, and the company later said the assistant did the work of over 850 agents in 2025. ### Why did Klarna start hiring human agents again? Chief executive Sebastian Siemiatkowski told Bloomberg in May 2025 that cost had been too predominant a factor in organising customer service and that "what you end up having is lower quality". He said customers must always know they can reach a human if they want. ### Did Klarna abandon its AI assistant? No. A spokesperson told Fortune Klarna was "very much still AI-first", and the company's 2025 Form 20-F says the OpenAI-powered assistant handled 80% of customer-service chats in 2025. The human hiring began as a small pilot of flexible, remote agents. ### Were Klarna customers harmed or did a regulator act? No quantified customer harm, compensation or regulatory action has been reported in connection with the reversal. The evidence of harm is the chief executive's own statement that the cost-driven approach led to lower-quality service; Klarna's filing says internal surveys showed no drop in satisfaction. ## Sources 1. [Klarna AI assistant handles two-thirds of customer service chats in its first month](https://www.klarna.com/international/press/klarna-ai-assistant-handles-two-thirds-of-customer-service-chats-in-its-first-month/) — Klarna, Feb 27, 2024 (official): "The AI assistant has had 2.3 million conversations, two-thirds of Klarna's customer service chats. It is doing the equivalent work of 700 full-time agents." 2. [Klarna Slows AI-Driven Job Cuts With Call for Real People](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-05-08/klarna-turns-from-ai-to-real-person-customer-service) — Bloomberg, May 8, 2025 (news): "Sebastian Siemiatkowski, 43, is plotting a rare recruitment drive so the buy-now-pay-later company's customers will always have the option of speaking to a real person." 3. [Klarna changes its AI tune and again recruits humans for customer service](https://customerexperiencedive.com/news/klarna-reinvests-human-talent-customer-service-AI-chatbot/747586) — CX Dive, May 9, 2025 (news): ""As cost unfortunately seems to have been a too predominant evaluation factor when organizing this, what you end up having is lower quality," Siemiatkowski told Bloomberg." 4. [As Klarna flips from AI-first to hiring people again, a new landmark survey reveals most AI projects fail to deliver](https://fortune.com/2025/05/09/klarna-ai-humans-return-on-investment) — Fortune, May 9, 2025 (news): "A Klarna spokesperson told Fortune the company was maintaining its policy of not replacing employees who leave, outside of hiring freelance customer-service agents for the company's outsourcing division, noting, "we're very much still AI-first."" 5. [Klarna Group plc annual report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2025](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/2003292/000200329226000007/klar-20251231.htm) — U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (Klarna filing), Feb 26, 2026 (official): "Our AI assistant handled 80% of customer service chats in the year ended December 31, 2025, according to our service chat log data, doing the work equivalent of over 850 full-time agents." ## Related incidents - [Klarna processed payments for nine months for shops advertising with celebrity deepfakes](https://www.bankingnewsai.com/ai-incidents/klarna-2026-deepfake-pill-ads-payments) All AI incidents at banks: https://www.bankingnewsai.com/ai-incidents --- Canonical page: https://www.bankingnewsai.com/ai-incidents/klarna-2025-ai-customer-service-reversal Part of [BankingNewsAI](https://www.bankingnewsai.com/) — the register of AI incidents at banks: https://www.bankingnewsai.com/ai-incidents. 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