Microsoft Lays Off 1,500 Workers, Blames "AI Wave"
Off the back of a strong third quarter, Microsoft is reportedly laying off somewhere between 1,000 and 1,500 workers across its Azure cloud and mixed reality departments. And in a leaked memo as tone-deaf as it is bland, an executive at the company proclaimed that their peons' sacrifices are not in vain, for they are being done on the altar of the almighty "AI wave."
"Our clear focus as a company is to define the AI wave and empower all our customers to succeed in the adoption of this transformative technology," wrote Jason Zander, executive vice president of Strategic Missions and Technologies at Microsoft, in an email to employees quoted by Business Insider. "Along the way, we make decisions that align with our long-term vision and strategy while ensuring the sustainability and growth of Microsoft."
Layoffs at big tech companies are practically de rigueur these days, even though the corporations are more powerful and wealthy than ever. This is frequently chalked up to systemic overhiring — which may well be true to a certain extent — but it's clear that those jobs are also being swept out to make room for investments in AI.
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