Major Grand Rapids company laying off 400 people due to AI, 200 in West Michigan (www.mlive.com)

Acrisure, a Grand Rapids–based insurance brokerage and fintech firm, announced it will eliminate 400 accounting positions in Q1 2026—about half in West Michigan—after deploying AI systems that automate a “significant portion” of the affected work, CEO Greg Williams said. The cuts follow years of AI investment (including a 2020 purchase of Tulco’s AI insurance practice in a ~$400M stock deal) and come as Acrisure, which employs 20,000 people globally and serves mostly small businesses, pivots to offer more digital and AI services to clients. The company says laid-off staff will receive severance, outplacement support and discretionary bonuses. The move is a high-profile example of white‑collar automation accelerating workforce restructuring: it underscores how large-scale ML/automation can materially reduce headcount in routine finance functions while enabling firms to reallocate capital toward productizing AI for customers. Technical specifics were limited—Acrisure did not disclose cost savings or the exact systems used—but the Tulco acquisition and the CEO’s statements indicate the cuts stem from integrated AI-driven accounting and back-office automation. The decision highlights broader industry trends (Challenger, Gray & Christmas tracked 17,375 AI-related cuts in 2025) and raises questions about reskilling, competitive pressure on smaller clients, and how companies balance efficiency gains with workforce impact.