Washington Post Faces Deep Job Cuts Amidst AI Developments and Border Enforcement Shifts
The Washington Post, a leading newspaper in the nation's capital, initiated deep cuts across all departments of its newsroom on Wednesday, February 4, 2026, at the behest of owner Jeff Bezos, according to NPR News. This move came amidst other significant developments, including Palantir CEO Alex Karp's warning about a widening gap in AI adoption and the withdrawal of federal agents from Minneapolis.
The Washington Post's layoffs aimed to reduce its workforce by a third, affecting every corner of the organization, NPR reported.
Meanwhile, Palantir CEO Alex Karp used the company's fourth-quarter earnings call to express concerns about the global AI landscape, Fortune reported. Following Palantir's report of a 70% year-over-year revenue growth to $1.407 billion and a rule of 40 score of 127, Karp argued that a significant divide was emerging between countries and institutions embracing advanced AI software and those lagging behind. He noted that Palantir's U.S. business grew 93% year-over-year in the fourth quarter, with America now accounting for 77% of total revenue. Karp questioned, "What do bombastic [leaders] do?"
In Minneapolis, White House border czar Tom Homan announced Wednesday that 700 federal immigration agents would be leaving the city after a month-long enforcement surge, Time reported. Homan stated at a press conference that the drawdown was made possible by unprecedented cooperation between federal and local officials. The departing agents would be drawn from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP), but around 2,000 federal law enforcement officers would remain in the area. "This is smart law enforcement, not less law enforcement," he said, according to Time. A complete pullback of federal agents would depend on Minneapolis' cooperation.
These events occurred against a backdrop of other significant issues. In Abilene, Texas, a housing crisis has emerged, exacerbated by the AI boom, Time reported. Community worker Mike Prado, who has worked in Abilene for a decade, described the current situation as the worst he had ever seen. He recounted an interaction with a homeless man who told him, "The AI plant took all the housing, man, I can't find nothing. I can't execute my voucher."
In the world of sports, American hockey star Hilary Knight, entering her fifth and final Winter Olympics, continued to play a key role in the U.S.-Canada hockey rivalry, Time reported. Knight, a 10-time world champion, has been a part of the rivalry since women's hockey debuted at the 1998 Nagano Games.
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