Google Lays Off Hundreds Of Employees In Android And Pixel Divisions

Google, again carried out a wave of layoffs (PHK). (photo: ary/voi.id)

JAKARTA Google's giant technology company, a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc, has again carried out a wave of layoffs (PHK). This time the Silicon Valley company cut hundreds of employees on platform and device units, including the Android, Pixel, and Chrome divisions, according to The Information technology media reports, Friday 11 April.

The cuts came months after Google offered a voluntary resignation program in January 2024 for employees in the unit. A Google spokesperson confirmed to The Information that this step was part of a restructuring effort following the merger of platform and device teams last year, which aims to make the company more agile and efficient.

"Since the merger of platform teams and devices last year, we have focused on becoming more agile and efficient, and this includes reducing the number of jobs in addition to the voluntary exit programs offered in January," a Google spokesperson said.

However, until this news was published, Google had not yet provided an official statement to the media.

Google isn't the only tech giant to tighten belts. Over the past year, big tech companies have shifted focus and budget to data center development and artificial intelligence (AI), while reducing investment in other product lines.

Several other companies that have also laid off in recent months include:

- Meta (Facebook address), which cut about 5% of its lowest performing employees in January.

- Microsoft, which dismissed 650 employees in the Xbox unit in September last year.

- Amazon, which lays off several units including the communications team.

- Apple, which cut about 100 positions in the digital service division by 2024.

Earlier in February, Bloomberg reported that Google had also laid off a small number of employees in the cloud division, but the scale of the cuts was not as large as on platform and device units.

Google in January 2023 announced a grand plan to reduce 12,000 jobs, or about 6% of its total global workforce.