Silicon Valley Slump: Google Announces Mass Layoff of 12,000 Workers

Woke tech giant Google has announced a major layoff, stating that the company plans to cut approximately 6 percent of its workforce, or about 12,000 employees.

AP News reports that Google has announced that it will be laying off 12,000 employees, or about 6 percent of its workforce. Tech giants including Microsoft, Amazon, Facebook (now known as Meta), and Salsesforce have also recently announced tens of thousands of layoffs as they tighten their belts amid a worsening outlook for the industry. The latest job losses mark the largest rounds of layoffs that Google has ever experienced.

Breitbart News recently covered Microsoft’s announcement of the layoff of 10,000 employees through March 31 as the company prepares for slower revenue growth. The software giant further stated that it will be taking a $1.2 billion charge tied to a lease consolidation and other activities.

Sundar Pichai, the CEO of Google and the head of its parent company Alphabet, informed staff on Friday of the layoffs in an email that was also posted on the business’ news blog. Pichai claimed that the layoffs are a result of a “rigorous review” of Google’s business practices.

According to Pichai, the positions being eliminated “cut across Alphabet, product areas, functions, levels, and regions.” He expressed his “deep regret” for the layoffs.

Regulatory filings show how Google’s workforce increased during the coronavirus pandemic, from 119,000 at the end of 2019 to nearly 187,000 by the end of last year. Google, which was established almost 25 years ago, was “bound to go through difficult economic cycles,” according to Pichai.

“These are important moments to sharpen our focus, re-engineer our cost base, and direct our talent and capital to our highest priorities,” he wrote. He highlighted the business’s investments in artificial intelligence as a potential growth area.

Wedbush Securities analysts Dan Ives, John Katsingris, and Taz Koujalgi, recently stated that “the clock has struck midnight on hyper-growth and digital advertising headwinds are on the horizon,” forcing the previously booming tech sector to halt hiring and announce layoffs.

Microsoft recently announced the elimination of 10,000 jobs, or nearly 5 percent of its workforce. Amazon announced this month that it is eliminating 18,000 jobs, though that represents a small portion of its 1.5 million-person workforce, while business software provider Salesforce is eliminating 8,000 jobs, or 10 percent of the entire workforce. Facebook announced last fall that it would cut 11,000 jobs, or 13 percent of its workforce.

The Wedbush analysts stated: “The stage is being set: Tech names across the board are cutting costs to preserve margins and get leaner.”

Despite indications that the economy is slowing down, employment in the United States has remained strong, and another 223,000 jobs were created in December. However, the tech industry expanded incredibly quickly over the past few years due to increased demand brought on by employees starting to work remotely.

Both Pichai and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella highlighted the value of leveraging their advancements in artificial intelligence technology in their layoff announcements, reflecting a resurgence of competition between the tech titans sparked by Microsoft’s expanding partnership with the San Francisco startup OpenAI.

Read more at AP News here.

Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship. Follow him on Twitter @LucasNolan