The big technology companies are committing a real bleeding in the form of layoffs and Microsoft has been no less. The Redmond giant continues with its plan lay off just over 10,000 workers and it seems that in this new phase it has been the turn of divisions such as Xbox, Surface, GitHub and HoloLens.
Another painful wave of layoffs within Microsoft
Talking about GitHub, it seems that Microsoft has expelled 10% of the total workforce (around 250 workers). In addition, the company is closing all offices and moving the team to remote locations to cut costs.
As to Xbox, Microsoft has once again passed the scissors for this successful division. We have new layoffs at ZeniMax Studios as well as the teams in charge of sponsorships, marketing and other business operations.
As it could not be otherwise, our “friends” have not been spared from Mixed Reality and HoloLens. Mixed reality and virtual reality have not caught on as expected and Microsoft does not want to continue investing so much in one of its biggest bets in the last decade.
According to the report, Microsoft would have halved the staff responsible for mixed reality, completely eliminating the team dedicated to metaverse applications (a concept that many companies tried to jump us through hoops with without success).
Others that have not escaped either are the designers. Microsoft hired many over the last 3 years with the goal of improving the design inconsistencies of Windows and other products and designing more modern and enjoyable interfaces. The goal has been achieved with Windows 11 but we hope that these layoffs do not deprive us of continuing to see necessary design updates to the platform.
Finally, we have to talk about surface. Its numbers in the last quarter have not been good (like those of the rest of the manufacturers) and it is also the subject of significant cuts. In this case, the layoffs would have impacted the team in charge of developing business relationships for the brand. Will this be the prelude to a step back from Surface in the nearest future?
the world we have
In short, and in my opinion, this wave of layoffs among large companies, whose profits only grow and the salaries of their managers and CEOs increase, is nothing more than the umpteenth confirmation that workers are nothing more than tools to themmere numbers.
There is something immoral and even frivolous in signing dismissals in the company you preside over while your net worth amounts to 1000 million dollars. Microsoft would be nothing without its workers., who are the ones who really design and create the products we love and enjoy. Unfortunately, that’s the way the world works. For now.