Big Tech Plans Over 180,000 Layoffs Amid AI Growth Shift

In 2025, major tech companies including Amazon, Microsoft, Google, Intel, and Meta are conducting large-scale layoffs, with over 180,000 employees affected globally, as they pivot towards extensive investments in artificial intelligence (AI) and automation. These companies are reallocating resources from human workforce expenses to AI infrastructure, with spending on AI-related capital expenditures reaching unprecedented levels—for example, Microsoft spent nearly $35 billion in one quarter alone on AI cloud infrastructure. While some executives, like Amazon's CEO Andy Jassy, downplay AI as the direct cause of layoffs, attributing cuts to organizational restructuring after rapid pandemic-era growth, others acknowledge that AI-driven efficiency and the need to remain competitive are significant factors behind workforce reductions and managerial cuts. Industry experts suggest these layoffs reflect a broader technological evolution where AI is reshaping job roles rather than simply eliminating them, emphasizing the need for workforce retraining and adaptation. Despite differing perspectives on causation, the trend is clear: tech firms are streamlining human labor while heavily investing in AI, signaling a transformative shift in the future of work within the tech sector.