Alphabet Inc.’s Google has announced organizational changes and layoffs that impact hundreds of employees across various sectors as part of the corporation’s efforts to slash costs. A company spokesperson confirmed the global job cuts in a statement to multiple media outlets. “Some teams are continuing to make these kinds of organizational changes, which include some role eliminations globally,” the spokesperson said. Digital assistant and hardware team employees, including the augmented reality team, internal software tools team, and those on engineering teams and the Google Voice Assistant program, are among those impacted.
Google acquired health and fitness tracking company Fitbit in 2021 for $2.1 billion. Employees working on the company’s hardware team responsible for devices such as the Pixel Watch, Nest, Fitbit, and those on the AR team, will also be impacted. However, Google confirmed to The Verge that the corporation remains committed to its augmented reality initiatives despite the cuts. Those affected will have the opportunity to apply for other positions within the organization. Despite Google’s statements, the Alphabet Workers Union condemned the layoffs and considered them to be unnecessary, expressing the need to protect jobs.
Moreover, the company remains committed to serving Fitbit users as well as innovating in the health space with personal AI, the redesigned Fitbit app, Fitbit Premium service, and the Fitbit tracker line. The latest layoffs come almost one year after Google announced the layoff of roughly 12,000 employees globally—constituting approximately 6 percent of Alphabet’s workforce. However, the tech giant, like many others, appears to be focusing on the future widespread implementation of generative AI and making efforts to implement generative AI capabilities to its virtual assistant. Similarly, Amazon announced plans to lay off employees within its Prime Video, MGM Studios subsidiary, and live-streaming platform Twitch as part of cost-cutting efforts.