Massive Layoffs Hit Microsoft and Unity

Credit: Microsoft/Unity

Xbox maker Microsoft will lay off approximately 10,000 employees, or 5% of its global workforce, the company revealed Wednesday. The news was revealed in an 8K filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commision (SEC) dated Jan. 18, and included an email sent to employees  from Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, That email laid out the company’s plans to make adjustments and cut costs—-including staff reductions—through the end of FY23 Q3.

“First, we will align our cost structure with our revenue and where we see customer demand,” Nadella said in a company-wide email. “Today, we are making changes that will result in the reduction of our overall workforce by 10,000 jobs through the end of FY23 Q3. This represents less than 5 percent of our total employee base, with some notifications happening today. It’s important to note that while we are eliminating roles in some areas, we will continue to hire in key strategic areas. We know this is a challenging time for each person impacted. The senior leadership team and I are committed that as we go through this process, we will do so in the most thoughtful and transparent way possible.”

These layoffs will be completed by March, according to Microsoft.

Also making news is game engine platform developer Unity, who announced that it plans to cut 284 – 300 jobs—the company employs around 8,000 employees at offices around the globe. The company said in its announcement that some affected employees can re-apply for open positions, and that some of these cuts are designed to eliminate duplicate roles created by recent acquisitions.

This is the second round of disclosed layoffs for the San Francisco-based game development tools company in recent memory; the last time it reduced its workforce was in June of 2022, when it cut around 225 jobs.