DHS to cut half of headquarters staff, disband AI and CX teams

DHS is preparing to eliminate roughly half of the 3,900 employees who keep its headquarters running, a move that would gut back‑office functions and erase two high‑profile innovation teams, according to internal plans obtained by Federal News Network.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has instructed the Management Directorate to identify positions that are not “mission‑critical,” beginning with a revived deferred‑resignation program, followed by buyouts and, if necessary, reduction‑in‑force notices. The goal: trim about 1,950 jobs—roughly half of the directorate—while “eliminating government waste,” a department spokesperson said.

The axe will fall hardest on two Biden‑era initiatives. The year‑old AI Corps—47 data scientists embedded across DHS—and the 70‑person Customer Experience Directorate, credited with saving an estimated $2.1 billion in paperwork costs, are both slated for closure. Former CX chief Dana Chisnell calls the plan “obviously not about cost savings.”

The headquarters purge follows March layoffs in the department’s civil‑rights offices and comes as the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency braces for its own deep staffing cuts, as reported by NPR and Axios.

Management officials have also begun reviewing 1,400 contracts for possible cancellation. Employees who cannot tie their jobs directly to “essential” missions could learn their fate within weeks, while lawmakers press DHS to explain how shedding tech talent squares with the administration’s pledge to deploy artificial intelligence “responsibly and securely.”