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Carl Eschenbach, CEO of Workday, speaks on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” outside the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Jan. 23, 2025.

Gerry Miller | CNBC

Workday, a maker of human resources and finance software, reported better-than-expected quarterly results on Tuesday. The shares popped more than 10% in extended trading.

Here’s how the company did in comparison with LSEG consensus:

  • Earnings per share: $1.92 adjusted vs. $1.78 expected
  • Revenue: $2.21 billion vs. $2.18 billion expected

Revenue increased 15% year over year in the quarter that ended on Jan. 31, according to a statement. Net income fell to $94 million, or 35 cents per share, from $1.19 billion, or $4.52 per share, in the same quarter a year earlier.

“The prior year period benefited from a $1.1 billion release of the valuation allowance related to U.S. federal and state deferred tax assets,” Workday said.

The company is seeing greater demand for artificial intelligence tools.

“In fact, AI is front and center in every conversation I have with customers, prospects and partners. They want to move beyond incremental productivity gains,” CEO Carl Eschenbach said on a conference call with analysts. “They’re also looking for ROI that helps them drive growth back into their business,” Eschenbach added.

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Around 30% of Workday’s expansions with existing clients drew on at least one AI product, in line with the previous quarter, Eschenbach said. Additional AI products will become available over the next year, he said.

The rise of the Department of Government Efficiency creates opportunity for Workday, which has focused more on federal sales over the past year and a half, Eschenbach said.

“The systems they have, specifically ERP, HCM, or financial systems, are very antiquated,” he said. “In fact, the majority of them are still on premises, which means they’re inefficient. And as we think about DOGE and what that could potentially do going forward, if you want to drive efficiency in the government, you have to upgrade your systems,” the CEO added.

After becoming Workday’s sole CEO last year, he said the company has hired Google Cloud executive Gerrit Kazmaier to be president of products and technology. Sayan Chakraborty, who currently holds that title, will retire after being at Workday for about a decade.

During the quarter, Workday announced the hiring of former UiPath CEO Rob Enslin as its new president and chief commercial officer. Workday also said it would use AI to summarize employee feedback in its Peakon product.

The company called for a 28% adjusted operating margin on $2.05 billion in subscription revenue for the fiscal first quarter. Analysts polled by StreetAccount had expected an adjusted margin of 26.7% and $2.06 billion in revenue.

For fiscal 2026, Workday now sees an adjusted margin of 28%, with $8.8 billion in subscription revenue, implying 14% growth. That is slightly higher than the forecast management gave in November.

As of Tuesday’s close, Workday shares were flat year over year, while the S&P 500 index was up 1%.

WATCH: Workday CEO on the future of work: Will depend on both human and digital labor going forward

Workday CEO on the future of work: Will depend on both human and digital labor going forward

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Instacart shares drop on report that FTC is probing company over AI pricing tool

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Instacart shares drop on report that FTC is probing company over AI pricing tool

Cheng Xin | Getty Images

Shares of grocery delivery service Instacart dropped about 7% in extended trading on Wednesday, following a report that said the U.S. Federal Trade Commission has begun an investigation into the company’s pricing practices.

The FTC sent a civil investigative demand to Instacart, Reuters reported, citing unnamed people.

A study released last week showed that prices for the same products in the same supermarkets that work with Instacart can vary by around 7%, which can result in over $1,000 in extra annual costs for customers. Instacart responded by saying that retailers determine prices listed in the app.

In 2022, Instacart spent $59 million to acquire Eversight, a company specializing in artificial intelligence-driven pricing and promotions for retailers and consumer packaged goods. Instacart sought to “create compelling savings opportunities for customers in real-time” with Eversight, according to a regulatory filing.

The FTC and Instacart did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Read Reuters’ full report here.

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Cramer slams Amazon for considering a circular AI deal reminiscent of the dotcom bubble

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Cramer slams Amazon for considering a circular AI deal reminiscent of the dotcom bubble

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Amazon says AI chief Rohit Prasad is leaving, Peter DeSantis to lead ‘AGI’ group

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Amazon says AI chief Rohit Prasad is leaving, Peter DeSantis to lead 'AGI' group

Rohit Prasad, Senior VP & Head Scientist for Alexa, Amazon, on Centre Stage during day one of Web Summit 2022 at the Altice Arena in Lisbon, Portugal.

Ben McShane | Sportsfile | Getty Images

Rohit Prasad, a top Amazon executive overseeing its artificial general intelligence unit, is leaving the company at the end of this year, the company confirmed Wednesday.

As part of the move, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said the company is reorganizing the AGI unit under a more expansive division that will also include its silicon development and quantum computing teams. The new division will be led by Peter DeSantis, a 27-year veteran of Amazon who currently serves as a senior vice president in its cloud unit.

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