Massive quote: As Frank Herbert writes in Dune, “As soon as males turned their considering over to machines within the hope that this is able to set them free. However that solely permitted different males with machines to enslave them.”
We have now entered the second half of the yr, and tech-related layoffs have already skyrocketed previous the 100,000 mark. The Bridge Chronicle has compiled an inventory of probably the most excellent mass layoffs bulletins from tech corporations to date, with the downsizing anticipated to hit all-time low by the top of 2025.
Up to now, Intel seems to have probably the most aggressive job-cutting plan of the yr. The US chipmaker lately introduced 24,000 job cuts, with much more layoffs anticipated within the close to future. By the top of 2025, “Chipzilla” is projected to have let go of 75,000 core staff worldwide. The corporate is in a precarious place, going through a seamless decline in PC CPU gross sales and a strategic pivot towards an AI-focused enterprise mannequin.
AI expertise can be one of many most important drivers behind Microsoft’s resolution to considerably cut back its workforce. The Redmond-based company has to date laid off 15,000 staff, affecting a number of divisions together with cloud, gaming, and {hardware}.
In a lately disclosed firm memo, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella tried to deal with the “painful” job reductions utilizing convoluted company lingo that sounded prefer it got here straight from a heartless (and brainless) chatbot.
Rumors recommend Nadella is deeply obsessive about GenAI, reportedly utilizing Copilot for each private {and professional} functions. Microsoft’s try to justify its newest layoffs is especially onerous to defend, given the corporate’s robust monetary efficiency and lack of any money-related points.
Different main tech corporations – together with Meta, Google, Amazon, and Cisco – have additionally fired or are within the strategy of firing hundreds of staff, reallocating funds to construct newer, extra highly effective AI fashions and capitalize on the agentic AI hype earlier than it probably collapses underneath its personal weight.
Huge funding efforts to commercialize AI aren’t the one elements behind the continuing layoffs. Massive Tech went on a hiring spree through the pandemic a number of years in the past, betting on a distant work growth and surging demand for tech merchandise – traits that by no means totally materialized.
A lot of that bloated workforce is now being trimmed. Moreover, a surge in geopolitical tensions and the persisting uncertainty round Trump-era tariffs are threatening future income prospects and prompting additional cost-cutting measures.
In Japanese company tradition, CEOs are anticipated to take important pay cuts to keep away from layoffs. Former Nintendo President and CEO Satoru Iwata famously acknowledged that firing staff sacrifices long-term morale for short-term positive aspects. I am prepared to guess my financial institution’s account that no single CEO within the Western tech enterprise would even contemplate doing one thing like that.
