Microsoft plans to announce a new round of layoffs in the near future to further control costs while increasing investment in artificial intelligence. This adjustment is expected to affect thousands of positions, including business lines such as sales, consulting, and the Xbox game department. People familiar with the matter said that the scale of the new round of layoffs will be smaller than similar layoffs last year, and the number of people involved is expected to be less than 2.5% of Microsoft's approximately 220,000 global employees. Some affected employees are expected to be immediately provided with internal transfer opportunities, but the specific release time may still be adjusted according to internal arrangements.
Microsoft has often made personnel structural adjustments around the start of its new fiscal year in the past few years, and this year's layoff plan continues this practice. Last year, Microsoft cut about 6,000 jobs in May and another 9,000 employees in July, equivalent to about 4% of the total number of employees at the time, to cope with cost pressures and business restructuring needs.
Currently, Microsoft is increasing its investment in artificial intelligence and data center infrastructure, which has also become an important background for it to control other costs. At the same time, Microsoft is under pressure from some investors on Wall Street. There are concerns in the market that artificial intelligence may replace some traditional software services, theoretically including some of Microsoft's existing products. Affected by this sentiment, Microsoft's stock price has fallen by about 17% in the past month.
Earlier this year, Microsoft launched a voluntary retirement plan in the United States, offering buyout options to employees at level 67 and below, with a cumulative age and service period of 70 years or more. According to people familiar with the matter, Microsoft has about 125,000 employees in the United States, and about 7% (nearly 9,000 people) are eligible for the plan. About one-third of them have chosen to buy out and leave. This result is within the company's expectations and also allows Microsoft to control the overall reduction ratio in this round of layoffs, which is lower than last year's level.
Employees in sales positions who are paid on a commission basis are excluded from the retirement buyout plan, according to an internal document. In addition, in terms of gaming business, the new Xbox CEO Asha Sharma has previously proposed a "reset" of the business in an internal memorandum. Therefore, the market has long expected that Xbox-related teams will usher in further job adjustments and personnel optimization.