A new report from Bloomberg claims Microsoft is planning to cut “thousands of jobs” early next month related to sales. However, it won’t be just sales that are affected, as other groups may also get trimmed according to Bloomberg’s source.
As to reasons for the cuts, Microsoft had already planned to use outside firms for sales, and it’s well-known that Microsoft is heavily spending on AI these days, which Bloomberg cites as one cause for the workforce reduction.
These aren’t the first jobs for Microsoft either, as the company laid off 3% of its workforce (6,000 employees) in May, and another 305 jobs at the beginning of June. Earlier this year, the company held performance-based job cuts, which were “less than 1%” of its workforce, but it also followed 10,000 jobs being cut in January 2023 (about 5% of its workforce at the time).
Layoffs in tech are not unusual, especially following post-pandemic reductions and pulling back on overspending. Intel is reportedly laying off 20,000 employees, as it faces significant headwinds in chip manufacturing and has a new CEO.
Microsoft is not exactly suffering as a company, either. It reported solid financial results for FY25 Q3, with $70.1 billion in revenue (up 13% year-over-year) and a net income of $25.8 billion (up 16% year-over-year).
Nonetheless, many companies are culling in anticipation of the larger role AI will play in day-to-day operations and the current fad of reducing middle management.
As of January 1, 2025, Microsoft’s global workforce was estimated to be around 235,000 employees. By June 2025, that number had dropped to approximately 228,000.
Microsoft declined to comment for the story for Bloomberg, but if it is true, it is likely to make the announcement timed following its June 30th wrap-up of Q4 fiscal year, where all eyes will be on earnings, growth, and momentum with artificial intelligence and its cooling partnership and growing rift with OpenAI.
