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https://www.seattletimes.com/business/microsoft/microsoft-cuts-4800-across-xbox-sales-divisions-redeploys-hundreds-more/
Microsoft cuts 4,800 across Xbox, sales divisions, redeploys hundreds more
Microsoft is laying off 605 Washington-based employees, part of companywide cuts, as it continues to cull its workforce amid a yearslong artificial-intelligence spending boom.
The Redmond-based tech giant told employees Monday morning that it would cut roles across the Xbox gaming division as well as sales teams, resulting in about 4,800 layoffs.
In Washington, 493 Redmond-based employees were let go along with an additional 112 remote workers, according to a state regulatory filing.
“Decisions like these are never easy, and you have my commitment that we are constantly looking for ways to reduce the need for job eliminations,” Microsoft Chief People Officer Amy Coleman wrote in a companywide memo on Monday. “Whenever possible, our priority is to place people into new roles aligned to the company’s highest priorities and greatest areas of opportunity.”
Coleman also said the employees laid off Monday will not be replaced by AI, in a sharp rebuke to the idea that the technology was causing the job losses rattling the tech industry. Rather, AI is changing the way work is done at Microsoft and radically shifting the roles within the company.
“We all need to keep learning, keep building new skills, and keep adapting as the work evolves,” Coleman said. “Our customers are navigating this same shift, and they’re counting on us to help them through it.”