- 817 Microsoft Software Engineers lost their jobs alone in Washington State
- It is assumed that the redundancies were targeted at ineffective management layers
- About one-third of Microsoft’s code is AI-written, Google and Meta are also in a similar place
Microsoft recently confirmed about 6,000 to 7,000 job cuts globally, including an estimated 2,000 redundancies in his home state of Washington.
It has now emerged that over 40% of Washington discharges were related to software engineering (817 roles) (via Bloomberg), with the company that previously stated that the redundancies were part of a wider cost cutting effort and a shift in investments to AI.
Together with software engineers, the heaviest affected roles in Washington Product Management (373 roles) and Technical Program Management (218 roles), with business program management (55 roles), customer experience program management (44 roles) and product design (31 roles) are also on the table.
Over 800 Microsoft Software Engineers dismissed in the state of Washington
Despite the clear and ongoing need for software engineers in an increasingly software -finished world, it has become clear that Microsoft Deer fits to replace human workers with artificial intelligence. CEO SATYA NADELLA recently confirmed that AI is now writing about a third of some projects code, with the recent redundancies raising concerns about AIS effects on human workers and software developers.
More broadly, this is a trend that we see from other tech companies, including Salesforce and Workday. Google’s CEO Sundar Pichai and Meta’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg have also noticed how much of their code is now written by AI.
However, Microsoft has been criticized for mixed messages. The company stated that the recent redundancies were primarily designed to reduce inefficiency in intermediate management by removing unnecessary layers, and while 17% of Washington releases related to leaders, the loss of hundreds of software engineers raises alarm bells.
Microsoft Principal Software Engineering Manager Mike Droettboom suggested in a LinkedIn post that Python and Open Source remain important roles, although the companies adopt big shifts: “I look around the room, so I have so many faces-somewhat known for almost 25 years-when I came back together with the same shared purpose, even as firm names of our bath.”
“My heart goes out to the majority of the team that was laid off,” the droett boom added.
Techradar Pro has asked Microsoft for further transparency in the roles affected by its redundancies.
