According to an investment banker at TD Cowen, Oracle is considering significant measures to fund its artificial intelligence (AI) expansion, including potentially cutting as many as 30,000 jobs and selling its health tech unit, Cerner. These moves are reportedly being considered to address investor concerns about how Oracle will finance its ambitious datacenter building program, which is crucial to supporting its $300 billion, five-year contract with OpenAI.

The investment firm estimates that the OpenAI deal alone will require Oracle to invest $156 billion in capital. This substantial financial commitment has reportedly made equity and debt investors question Oracle's ability to manage the build-out, leading to increased credit default swap (CDS) spreads and pressure on Oracle's stock and bonds. CDS prices, which offer insurance against debt default, have reportedly tripled for Oracle in recent months, signaling a perceived increase in risk.

TD Cowen estimates that fulfilling the OpenAI contract, along with builds for Meta and Nvidia as part of a $523 billion total commitment, would necessitate roughly 3 million GPUs and other IT equipment. They also suggest that US banks have become hesitant to lend to Oracle-linked datacenter projects, and private operators who lease to Oracle are facing difficulties in securing financing, which further complicates Oracle's expansion plans.

Oracle's healthcare unit, Oracle Health (formerly Cerner), connects various entities like patients, providers, payers, and public health organizations through AI-powered solutions designed to streamline data exchange and improve operational efficiencies. Oracle acquired Cerner in 2022. However, despite this, the investment banker considers Cerner a "multibillion black hole".

Oracle has been making efforts to invest in AI infrastructure. Oracle is participating in the Stargate joint venture with OpenAI and SoftBank, with aims to invest up to $500 billion in building advanced AI infrastructure in the United States over the next four years. This includes data centers, high-performance computing, and cloud platforms optimized for AI.

Oracle's potential actions reflect a broader trend in the tech industry, where companies are restructuring and reallocating resources to focus on AI development. In January 2026, Oracle was set to cut over 250 jobs across its San Francisco Bay Area operations. In 2025, Oracle also initiated layoffs across multiple regions, including India, the United States, and Canada. The layoffs have affected various divisions, including Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI), Fusion ERP, and teams working on AI and machine learning projects.