Google plans to lay off 12,000 employees; Sundar Pichai takes 'full responsibility'

Google plans to lay off nearly 12,000 employees. Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai announced the news to employees over an email on Friday. It was also posted on the company's news blog. “The company has been hiring for periods of dramatic growth over the past two years but that was a different economic reality than the one we face today,” Pichai said. 

"I have some difficult news to share. We’ve decided to reduce our workforce by approximately 12,000 roles. We’ve already sent a separate email to employees in the US who are affected. In other countries, this process will take longer due to local laws and practices."

"This will mean saying goodbye to some incredibly talented people we worked hard to hire and have loved working with. I’m deeply sorry for that. The fact that these changes will impact the lives of Googlers weighs heavily on me, and I take full responsibility for the decisions that led us here," Sundar Pichai wrote. 

Microsoft too in the line…

Microsoft Corporation will also lay off around 10,000 employees by the end of the third fiscal quarter of 2023 owing to 'macroeconomic conditions and changing customer priorities', the US Securities and Exchange Commission said. 

“On January 18, 2023, Microsoft Corporation announced to its employees a series of actions it is taking in response to macroeconomic conditions and changing customer priorities. These actions include workforce reductions of approximately 10,000 employees by the end of the third fiscal quarter of 2023, changes to our hardware portfolio, and lease consolidation to create higher density across our workspaces,” the US Securities and Exchange Commission said in a statement.

The layoffs would be the most recent in the US technology sector, where companies such as Amazon.com Inc and Meta Platforms Inc have announced big layoffs in response to slowing demand and a worsening global economic outlook.

Satya Nadella’s warning turns out to be true

The layoffs come just weeks after Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella warned that the tech industry would face two years of challenges. In an interview with CNBC, Nadella admitted that Microsoft was not "immune to global changes" and emphasised the importance of efficiency in tech companies.