According to a report by Business Insider, the employees affected by the layoffs will include those whose positions are being eliminated. Some of these workers may be given new roles, while many others will not be reassigned to any new positions. Employee layoffs are not a new experience for Google, as the company laid off around 12,000 workers in 2023. Earlier this year, in May, Google made cuts to its core team, removing 200 employees. This situation is becoming increasingly familiar, with Pichai himself acknowledging that while layoffs are tough, they were necessary.

The main reason behind the current layoffs is seen to be the competition from OpenAI’s advancements in artificial intelligence. OpenAI’s chatbot, ChatGPT, has created significant competition in the market, posing a challenge for Google. As a result, Google has been working on improving its own AI technology, which started with Bard and later evolved into Gemini. However, in order to stay competitive in this fast-changing space, Google must reduce its expenses and restructure its workforce.

Since the pandemic, layoffs in the tech industry have become more common. In 2022 and 2023, numerous major tech companies, including Google, Tesla, Amazon, Microsoft, and TikTok, laid off employees. This trend of layoffs has affected thousands of workers and even led many small companies to shut down operations.

In response to the layoffs, Sundar Pichai acknowledged that employee morale may be negatively affected, but he emphasized that these steps were necessary for the future of the company. He explained that without these cuts, Google would not have been able to make the investments needed in areas like artificial intelligence, which is critical for the company’s long-term growth.