“These new layoffs are not on the scale of last year’s (job) reductions, and will not affect all teams. But I know it is very difficult to see colleagues and teams affected,” Pichai said in an email to employees. employees accessed by AFP on Thursday.
“Many of these changes have already been announced, although, to be honest, some teams will continue to make specific resource allocation decisions throughout the year when necessary, and some roles may be affected,” he added.
Google laid off about 12,000 people this time last year, about 6% of its then-workforce, as inflation and interest rates rose.
The company confirmed the cuts of “several hundred” positions from its global advertising team, amid a push to make greater use of artificial intelligence.
Artificial Intelligence: Google plans additional reductions
The job cuts in its sales team for “large clients” are aimed at better supporting small and medium-sized businesses that advertise on Google’s platform, the Internet giant said.
On Wednesday, the company laid off about 100 employees in its YouTube division, it confirmed to TechCrunch.
According to the New York Times, YouTube workers have two months to find new positions within the company before their layoffs take effect.
Since the beginning of 2024, tech titan Amazon has also cut several hundred jobs at its entertainment units Twitch, Prime Video and Amazon MGM Studios.
Since the end of 2022, American technology giants have sacrificed tens of thousands of jobs, in a wave of unprecedented layoffs after the COVID-19 pandemic, when they multiplied hiring in the midst of confinement.
Meta, owner of Facebook, laid off more than 20,000 workers in the period, in what it called the “year of efficiency,” while Amazon left about 27,000 people unemployed.
Source: With information from AFP
