Microsoft lays off more employees after huge job cut in AI era

Tech giant Microsoft has cut hundreds of more jobs just weeks after reducing nearly 3 per cent of its global workforce in the AI era.

As per a filing with Washington state's Employment Security Department, 305 additional employees in Redmond, Washington have been asked to leave.

A company spokesperson said in a statement the latest headcount reduction is in addition to the 6,000 job cuts announced last month, which is roughly 3 per cent of its global workforce. "We continue to implement organisational changes necessary to best position the company for success in a dynamic marketplace," the spokesperson was quoted as saying in reports.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has said that the recent layoffs were not linked to employee performance but due to organisational restructuring.

Addressing staff during a town-hall meeting, Nadella said the layoffs were necessary to realign teams in accordance with Microsoft's evolving priorities, particularly its growing focus on artificial intelligence.

He acknowledged the emotional toll of the decision but underscored that it was driven by strategic shifts, not shortcomings in productivity or talent.

Last month, Frank X Shaw, Chief Communications Officer, Microsoft, said that “We've entered the era of AI agents”. 

“Thanks to groundbreaking advancements in reasoning and memory, AI models are now more capable and efficient, and we're seeing how AI systems can help us all solve problems in new ways. 

For example, 15 million developers are already using GitHub Copilot, and features like agent mode and code review are streamlining the way they code, check, deploy and troubleshoot,” he said during the 'Microsoft Build 2025' event.

Hundreds of thousands of customers are using Microsoft 365 Copilot to help research, brainstorm and develop solutions, and more than 230,000 organisations — including 90 per cent of the Fortune 500 — have already used Copilot Studio to build AI agents and automations.