The year 2023 has witnessed a staggering rise in job cuts across the tech industry, with major players such as Microsoft, Meta, Google, Amazon, and Zoom implementing significant layoffs. As of December, the tech industry has seen an unprecedented wave of job cuts, totaling 240,000, marking a 50% increase compared to the previous year. The common reasons cited by these companies include organizational restructuring, cost-cutting measures, and the impact of advanced technologies, particularly artificial intelligence (AI), making certain roles obsolete.
January Layoffs Overview
In January, the tech industry experienced a wave of layoffs, reflecting ongoing challenges and strategic shifts. Major companies such as SoFi Technologies, NetApp, Groupon, and Impossible Foods implemented workforce reductions, affecting thousands of employees globally. PayPal, Arrival, Waymo, and Spotify also announced significant layoffs, contributing to a challenging landscape. Notably, Alphabet, Google’s parent company, announced a 6% reduction, impacting 12,000 employees across divisions like Area 120 and Intrinsic.
Fandom, Microsoft, and Swiggy faced layoffs, underscoring the industry-wide impact. Fintech startup Greenlight and learning platform Career Karma also cut substantial portions of their workforce. The crypto exchange Coinbase and NFT marketplace SuperRare implemented large-scale layoffs, while e-commerce giant Amazon extended a prior round of job cuts. Salesforce and Vimeo announced workforce reductions, emphasizing the broader economic challenges affecting the tech sector.
February Layoffs Overview
In February, Twitter, under Elon Musk’s leadership, laid off over 200 employees, marking a 70% reduction in headcount since Musk’s takeover. Poshmark confirmed a minimal impact, affecting less than 2% of its 800+ workforce. Green Labs planned a substantial round of layoffs, potentially affecting 50% of its employees. Chipper Cash conducted a second round of layoffs, relieving approximately one-third of its workforce (around 100 employees).
Evernote laid off 129 employees, while Jumia cut 20% of its staff (over 900 positions). Convoy shuttered its Atlanta office, marking its third round of layoffs in less than a year. Sprinklr reduced its global workforce by 4% (over 100 employees), and iRobot cut 7% of its workforce (around 85 employees). Twilio announced a 17% reduction, impacting about 1,400 employees, and GitHub laid off 10% of its staff (300 employees).
Yahoo cut 20% of its adtech business staff (1,600 employees), GitLab reduced its headcount by 7% (around 114 people), and Affirm downsized by 19% (about 500 employees), shutting down its crypto unit. Zoom cut 15% of its staff (1,300 people), VinFast reduced nearly 35 roles, and Dell laid off 5% of its global workforce (6,650 people). Getaround cut 10% of its staff (42 employees), Pinterest laid off 150 employees, and Rivian, for the second time in less than a year, reduced its workforce by 6%.
March Layoffs Overview
In March 2023, Netflix confirmed a “handful of layoffs,” including key executives. Roku announced a 6% reduction, letting go of 200 employees. Unacademy cut over 350 roles, marking a 12% reduction, four months after a previous cut. Shift Technologies laid off 30% of its workforce in Q1 2023. Lucid announced an 18% reduction, laying off 1,300 employees by the end of Q2 2023. GitHub streamlined its South Asian market, eliminating over 100 jobs. Disney disclosed three rounds of layoffs, impacting 7,000 employees. Salesforce considered additional layoffs on top of the 10% cut in January. Accenture planned to cut 19,000 jobs, around 2.5% of its workforce.
Indeed laid off 2,200 employees, constituting 15% of its staff. Roofstock cut 27% of its staff, roughly 100 employees. Twitch announced a layoff of 400 employees. Amazon laid off 9,000 people, including some from AWS, and closed DPReview. Livespace laid off at least 100 employees, approximately 2% of its workforce. Course Hero cut 15% of its staff, affecting 42 people. Klaviyo laid off 140 employees. Microsoft laid off 559 workers, including an entire team dedicated to AI innovation.
Meta confirmed cutting 10,000 people, including 5,000 open roles. Y Combinator reduced its staff by 20%, impacting 17 team members. Salesforce continued its layoffs, impacting more employees in March. Atlassian cut about 500 employees, or 5% of its total workforce. SiriusXM laid off 475 employees, constituting 8% of its workforce. Alerzo laid off 15% of its full-time workforce, leaving about 800 employees. Cerebral let go of 15% of its workforce, around 285 employees. Waymo issued a second round of layoffs, cutting 8%, or 209 employees. Thoughtworks laid off about 4% of its global workforce, approximately 500 employees.
April Layoffs Overview
In April, several prominent companies implemented workforce reductions, continuing the trend of layoffs in the tech industry. Clubhouse, a social audio platform, announced a significant layoff, reducing more than 50% of its staff. Dropbox followed suit, announcing a workforce reduction of 500 employees, constituting 16% of its staff. Amazon, as part of its ongoing restructuring, shut down its Halo Health division, affecting 9,000 employees, bringing the total job cuts to 27,000 or 8% of the corporate workforce in 2023.
Rapid, formerly known as RapidAPI, laid off 50% of its staff, impacting approximately 115 employees. Anthemis Group announced a layoff of 16 people, or 28% of its workforce. Ride-hailing company Lyft confirmed layoffs affecting 26% of its workforce, approximately 1,072 employees. Meta, formerly known as Facebook, disclosed plans to lay off 10,000 jobs in addition to the 11,000 jobs cut in November. Real estate company Redfin laid off 201 employees, about 4% of its workforce, marking its third reduction since June. Apple reported a small number of layoffs in its corporate retail teams.
May Layoffs Overview
In May, Taxfix announced a layoff affecting 20% of its staff, resulting in the termination of 120 employees. Meta, formerly Facebook, disclosed a substantial layoff, affecting about 6,000 people. Since November, a total of approximately 21,000 jobs have been cut at Meta. Reliance Retail’s online shopping platform, JioMart, laid off over 1,000 employees on May 22. Additionally, the company plans to cut up to 9,900 more roles in the coming weeks. Krebs Stamos Group laid off six people, reducing its workforce. In April, the firm had 18 employees, including the founders.
TuSimple, an autonomous trucking company, announced a layoff affecting approximately 30% of its employees. Prior to the reduction, TuSimple had about 550 employees in the U.S., reducing to approximately 220 post-layoff. Nuro, a robotics and autonomous vehicle company, announced a layoff affecting 30% of its workforce, equivalent to about 340 employees across the company. LinkedIn confirmed a layoff of 716 jobs, representing about 3.6% of its total employees. The company also revealed plans to phase out its local jobs app in China, while simultaneously opening about 250 new jobs on May 15.
Rapid, previously known as RapidAPI, announced another round of layoffs, cutting 70 more employees less than two weeks after the initial layoff of 50% of its staff. The company’s headcount dropped by 82%, from 230 in April to just 42. Meesho announced a workforce reduction of 15%, eliminating 251 roles. This comes after a previous round of layoffs that removed 150 roles about a year ago.
Shopify announced a layoff impacting 20% of its workforce, equating to more than 2,000 people. The company also disclosed the sale of its logistics business to Flexport for approximately 13% in stock. Bishop Fox, a cybersecurity consulting firm, laid off around 50 employees, constituting 13% of its workforce on May 2. Vorwerk-owned Neato Robotics announced its closure, impacting nearly 100 employees.
June Layoffs Overview
In June, Niantic announced a layoff affecting 230 employees, marking a second round of workforce reductions within a year, following a previous layoff of around 90 employees. Plex disclosed a layoff of approximately 20% of its staff, resulting in the termination of 37 employees. Grab, a Southeast Asian ride-hailing and food delivery company, laid off over a thousand people, equivalent to 11% of its staff.
Olx Group cut around 800 jobs globally, coinciding with the closure of operations for its automotive business, Olx Autos, in certain markets. Mojocare announced a layoff affecting about 150 employees, constituting a majority of its workforce. Tada, operated by Korean ride-sharing company Socar’s subsidiary VCNC, revealed plans to let go of at least 50% of its staff, impacting about 45 people. Better.com laid off its real estate team, with the exact number of affected employees unclear.
Rocket engine startup Ursa Major laid off at least 14 people, though the company did not provide details on the total number affected. Spotify announced a layoff of 200 jobs in its podcast unit, resulting in a 2% reduction in its workforce, following a previous significant wave of layoffs.
July Layoffs Overview
In July, Dunzo announced a delay in employee salaries for a month and revealed plans for a new round of layoffs starting from July 20. The company, facing financial difficulties, is expected to cut over 200 jobs, marking its third layoff this year and bringing the total job reductions to about 400. Cameo, a platform connecting users with personalized video messages from celebrities, announced its intention to lay off 80 workers, reflecting organizational adjustments. Indian startup Skill-Lync disclosed a layoff affecting 20% of its workforce, approximately 225 employees, as part of strategic changes within the company. Crunchbase announced on LinkedIn that it is laying off 52 employees, indicating a restructuring effort within the company.
Microsoft revealed additional job cuts, occurring a week into its 2023 fiscal year. These layoffs are in addition to the 10,000 job reductions announced in January, reflecting ongoing adjustments in the company’s workforce. ClickUp, a productivity platform, announced a layoff affecting 10% of its workforce, amounting to about 90 people, as part of its organizational realignment.
August Layoffs Overview
In August, the tech industry experienced a wave of layoffs, reflecting challenges faced by various companies. Malwarebytes, on August 31, announced a significant reduction of 100 employees, primarily impacting corporate roles. Twiga followed suit on August 21, laying off 33% of its workforce, affecting 283 employees. SecureWorks, for the second time this year, disclosed on August 14 that it would cut 15% of its workforce, impacting around 300 employees.
CoinDesk also announced a workforce reduction of 16% on the same day. Notably, Rapid7 unveiled plans on August 9 to lay off 18% of its global workforce, impacting over 400 employees. The trend continued with Mobile Premier League, Astra, Discord, HackerOne, Tekion, and Planet, collectively shedding jobs and contributing to the broader industry challenges.
September Layoffs Overview
In September, the tech industry faced continued challenges as several prominent companies underwent significant workforce reductions. IronNet, a cybersecurity startup, disclosed on September 29 that it had ceased all business activities, preparing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy and laying off its remaining staff. Naughty Dog reportedly cut at least 25 contract developers, and on September 28, Epic Games, the maker of Fortnite, announced a substantial 16% reduction in its workforce, affecting 870 employees.
Talkdesk, experiencing its third round of layoffs in less than 14 months, impacted at least 140 employees on September 27. Byju’s, undergoing restructuring efforts, revealed plans to cut 5,000 jobs on September 26. Other notable layoffs included Roblox, Divvy Homes, Sensor Tower, and Roku, reflecting the pervasive economic challenges within the tech sector, as companies grappled with strategic shifts and market dynamics, leading to substantial workforce adjustments.
October Layoffs Overview
October 2023 brought a wave of significant layoffs across various industries, reflecting the ongoing challenges faced by several prominent companies. Bungie, the Sony-owned game studio, announced on October 30 that it would lay off about 100 employees and delay two upcoming titles. Other notable layoffs included Liberty Mutual’s plan to cut 850 staff members, Salsify’s elimination of 110 jobs, and Nokia’s decision to cut up to 14,000 jobs, constituting 16% of its workforce.
In the tech sector, Google confirmed the elimination of at least 40 roles in its news division on October 18, while Stack Overflow announced a substantial 28% reduction in its staff, impacting around 100 people. LinkedIn confirmed on October 16 that it would cut 668 more jobs, bringing the total to nearly 1,400 for the year, with a focus on roles in research and development. Beyond tech, companies like Expedia Group, Hopper, and Qualtrics also faced significant workforce reductions, with Expedia cutting around 100 jobs and Qualtrics eliminating 780 roles.
November Layoffs Overview
November 2023 witnessed a sweeping wave of layoffs across diverse industries, underscoring economic challenges and strategic shifts. Tech and gaming companies faced significant workforce reductions, including Unity, which laid off 265 workers on November 29 after discontinuing its Wētā Digital division. Tier Mobility cut around 22% of its staff on November 28, and Dataminr began laying off approximately 20% of its workforce from November 28, citing rapid advancements in its AI platform. ByteDance initiated mass layoffs on November 27 in its gaming department, Nuverse.
In the financial technology sector, Zepz cut 30 roles on November 30, and Domo reduced 7% of its staff. Sports betting startup Mojo announced a layoff of 20% of its workforce on the same day. Loco, co-founded by Anirudh Pandita and Ashwin Suresh, disclosed a workforce reduction of about 36% on November 30.
The month also saw major layoffs at established companies such as Amazon, Cruise, Snap, and Google, impacting various divisions. Additionally, prominent startups like OpenSea, Ava Labs, and 100 Thieves experienced substantial workforce reductions.
December Layoffs Overview
December 2023 marked further workforce reductions across prominent companies, reflecting ongoing challenges and strategic shifts in the business landscape. Spotify, in its third round of layoffs, announced a 17% reduction in its workforce, with CEO Daniel Ek citing the need to control costs and improve efficiency. Yahoo continued with its plan to cut nearly 20% of its staff as part of a comprehensive restructuring initiative.
Unity Software, a videogame software provider, laid off 265 employees, constituting 3.8% of its global workforce, and terminated its agreement with a digital video effects company. Twilio initiated its third round of layoffs, cutting 5% of its workforce, primarily affecting sales professionals. Amazon, after substantial layoffs throughout the year, implemented job cuts in its Alexa business and music division, impacting employees in North America, Latin America, and Europe.
The gaming industry also experienced significant layoffs, with Ubisoft Montreal cutting 100 jobs, Epic Games laying off 16% of its workforce, and various other developers, including New World Interactive, Tinybuild, and Codemasters, announcing job cuts. Unity’s plans to cut 265 jobs and close offices in approximately 14 locations underscore the broader industry adjustments.
Conclusion
In 2023, big tech companies like Microsoft, Meta, Google, Amazon, and Zoom had to cut a lot of jobs, and it’s causing a ripple effect in the startup world. About 240,000 people lost their jobs by December, which is a lot more than the year before. The main reasons for these job cuts were big changes happening inside these companies, trying to save money, and new technology like artificial intelligence making some jobs not needed anymore.
These big companies are like the pillars holding up the tech world, but even they had to make tough choices that affected everyone. Startups, which are small, innovative companies, also felt the impact, with some having to shrink or close down.
The year showed us that the tech world is always changing, with new ideas and challenges. The people who work in tech had to adapt to these changes, sometimes by losing their jobs. The effects of these job cuts will likely continue to shape how tech companies operate and make decisions in the coming years. It’s a reminder that even in the world of technology, where we often think of growth and progress, there are also tough times that require resilience and the ability to adapt.