The operative legal logic in both rulings is narrow but consequential: under China's Labour Contract Law, a company may restructure for unforeseeable economic reasons, but choosing to deploy AI is a deliberate strategic decision — not an act of circumstance. That framing closes the most common loophole Western employers use when attributing layoffs to 'technological change.' The was specifically triggered by a tech worker whose role was eliminated after being replaced by an AI system, and the court found the dismissal unlawful on those grounds.…