Microsoft's layoffs begin; company fires employees in HoloLens, Surface, Xbox
Microsoft announced its decision to lay off 10,000 employees last month. As part of it, the company has now cuts jobs in units, including HoloLens mixed reality hardware, Surface devices, and Xbox gaming division. The company's plan to cut around 5% of its workforce will go on till March 31. It began terminating roles in different units last month.
Why does this story matter?
The post-pandemic economic slowdown has affected tech companies all over the world. Some of the biggest names, including Alphabet, Amazon, Meta, Microsoft, and Twitter, have laid off employees. With consumers putting a break on spending, companies are forced to take a look at their operational costs. Microsoft expects its revenue growth to slow down, and they expect layoffs to balance the books.
Layoffs affected HoloLens' hardware team
Microsoft decided to cut much of HoloLens' hardware team, which has led to questions about the next non-army iteration (HoloLens 3) of the goggles. The company did not comment on layoffs but said it remains committed to mixed reality and HoloLens 2. At Xbox, the job cuts affected marketing and the Xbox Gaming Ecosystem Group.
Major Xbox gaming studios were affected by job cuts
Xbox chief Phil Spencer sent an email to employees to inform them about the job cuts. He, however, did not mention what parts of the business were affected. "I encourage everyone to take the time and space necessary to process these changes and support your colleagues," Spencer wrote. Last month, some major Xbox studios, including Halo and ZeniMax Media, saw employee exits.
Microsoft laid off the entire Mixed Reality Toolkit team
Microsoft's job cuts have also affected its other virtual reality and mixed reality ventures. Last month, the company decided to shut down AltspaceVR, the social VR platform it acquired in 2017. The platform will be sunsetting on March 10, 2023. In January, Microsoft also laid off the entire team behind Mixed Reality Toolkit, which was crucial for cross-platform mixed reality development.
GitHub is laying off 10% of its workforce
Microsoft-owned open software repository GitHub has also decided to lay off employees. The company announced that it is laying off 10% of its workforce through the end of this fiscal year. GitHub has about 3,000 employees. The company has also decided to shutter all its offices and go fully remote. It will also continue its hiring freeze and make other internal changes.
