Google is to lay off 12,000 workers, writes CEO Sundar Pichai.
we hired for a different economic reality than the one we face today
The announcement comes two days after Microsoft said it would lay off 10,000 employees. Pichai may at least be praised for his directness. Compare the two announcements:
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella:
We're living through times of significant change, and as I meet with customers and partners, a few things are clear. First, as we saw customers accelerate their digital spend during the pandemic, we're now seeing them optimize their digital spend to do more with less. We're also seeing organizations in every industry and geography exercise caution as some parts of the world are in a recession and other parts are anticipating one. At the same time, the next major wave of computing is being born with advances in AI, as we're turning the world's most advanced models into a new computing platform.
This is the context in which we as a company must strive to deliver results on an ongoing basis, while investing in our long-term opportunity. I'm confident that Microsoft will emerge from this stronger and more competitive, but it requires us to take actions grounded in three priorities.
First, we will align our cost structure with our revenue and where we see customer demand. Today, we are making changes that will result in the reduction of our overall workforce by 10,000 jobs
Pichai:
I have some difficult news to share. We've decided to reduce our workforce by approximately 12,000 roles
