Klarna, a well-known buy-now-pay-later company, is rethinking its strategy after relying heavily on Artificial Intelligence (AI) to manage customer service. In a recent update, CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski said the company is now planning to reintroduce human agents, realising that depending too much on AI may have hurt the overall customer experience.
In 2024, Klarna announced that its AI assistant had handled 2.3 million customer interactions — roughly two-thirds of its total service chats — effectively doing work of around 700 full-time human agents. The move helped the company cut costs and boost efficiency at a time when it was working to streamline operations, especially after a steep drop in valuation in 2022. However, CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski has now acknowledged that the move may have been a step too far, as it led to a noticeable dip in service quality.
To fix this, Bloomberg reported that Klarna is testing a new support model that allows people to work remotely in a flexible, app-based system, much like how drivers work with ride-hailing apps. The idea is to make it easier for customers to connect with a real person whenever they need help — especially in situations where AI still struggles to provide accurate or empathetic responses.
Although the company is returning to human support, its focus on AI isn’t going away. Klarna is still working on launching a smart digital assistant that can help users manage money better — like finding good insurance deals or negotiating lower interest rates. The company also continues to upgrade its technology systems to make services faster and more personalised.
Even with the new hiring push, Klarna’s total workforce is expected to shrink gradually due to natural employee exits and ongoing automation. From around 3,000 employees now, the company may scale down to 2,500 within a year.
Siemiatkowski suggested that the goal going forward is to strike a better balance between technology and human support. “The move was part of a broader shift within the company to become leaner, especially after its valuation dropped significantly in 2022,” he added.
Klarna serves over 93 million customers globally and works with more than 600,000 merchants. As the company prepares for a future IPO, its latest decision shows that while AI is powerful, it can’t fully replace the human touch — at least not yet.
