Tech companies are trimming staff and slowing hiring as they face higher interest rates and sluggish consumer spending in the US and a strong dollar abroad.<\/p>\n
The tech industry shed 9,587 jobs in October, the highest monthly total since November 2020, according to Challenger, Gray and Christmas, a consulting firm that tallies job cuts announced or confirmed by companies across telecom, electronics, hardware manufacturing and software development.<\/p>\n
In recent earnings reports, Alphabet, Amazon, Meta, Microsoft, and others fell short of projections, sending shares plunging and shaving hundreds of billions of dollars from their market valuations. Meta, for instance, has lost more than 67% of its value so far this year.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s a list of who\u2019s cutting jobs and pulling back on hiring.<\/p>\n
Amazon<\/strong><\/p>\n The e-commerce titan plans to cut about 10,000<\/strong> jobs. The layoffs will likely target Amazon\u2019s devices group, responsible for the Echo smart speakers and Alexa digital assistant, as well as the retail divisions and human resources, Bloomberg News reported.<\/p>\n In November, Amazon halted \u201cnew incremental\u201d hiring across its corporate workforce.<\/p>\n Apple<\/strong><\/p>\n According to people with knowledge of the matter, the iPhone maker has paused hiring<\/strong> for many jobs outside of research and development, an escalation of its plan to reduce budgets heading into next year.<\/p>\n The break generally doesn\u2019t apply to teams working on future devices and long-term initiatives, but it affects some corporate functions and standard hardware and software engineering roles.<\/p>\n Chime<\/strong><\/p>\n The digital-banking startup Chime Financial Inc. is cutting 12%<\/strong> of its staff or 160<\/strong> people. A spokesperson said the company remains well-capitalized, and the move will position it for \u201csustained success.\u201d<\/p>\n Dapper Labs<\/strong><\/p>\n Dapper Labs founder and Chief Executive Officer Roham Gharegozlou said in a letter to employees that the company had laid off 22%<\/strong> of its staff. He cited macroeconomic conditions and operational challenges stemming from the company\u2019s rapid growth.<\/p>\n Dapper Labs created the NBA Top Shot marketplace for nonfungible tokens, a digital asset class that has seen a steep drop in demand since the crypto market downturn.<\/p>\n Digital Currency Group<\/strong><\/p>\n Cryptocurrency conglomerate Digital Currency Group embarked on a restructuring last month that saw about 10<\/strong> employees exit the company. As part of the shake-up, Mark Murphy was promoted to president from chief operating officer.<\/p>\n Galaxy Digital<\/strong><\/p>\n Galaxy Digital Holdings Ltd., the crypto financial services firm founded by billionaire Michael Novogratz, is considering eliminating as much as 20%<\/strong> of its workforce.<\/p>\n The plan may still be changed, and the final number could range from 15% to 20%, according to people familiar with the matter. Galaxy\u2019s shares have plummeted more than 80% this year, part of a rout for cryptocurrencies.<\/p>\n Intel<\/strong><\/p>\n The chipmaker said that Intel is cutting jobs and slowing spending on new plants to save $3 billion next year. The hope is to save as much as $10 billion by 2025, a plan that went over well with investors, who sent the shares up more than 10% on 28 October. Bloomberg News reported earlier that the headcount reduction could number in the thousands<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Lyft<\/strong><\/p>\n Lyft Inc.\u2019s cost-saving efforts include divesting its vehicle service business. It\u2019s eliminating 13% of staff or about 683<\/strong> people. The company had already said it would freeze hiring in the US until at least next year. It\u2019s now facing even stiffer headwinds.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are not immune to the realities of inflation and a slowing economy,\u201d co-founders John Zimmer and Logan Green said in a memo. \u201cWe need 2023 to be a period where we can better execute without having to change plans in response to external events \u2014 and the tough reality is that today\u2019s actions set us up to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n Meta<\/strong><\/p>\n The Facebook parent is cutting 11,000<\/strong> jobs, the first major round of layoffs in the social-media company\u2019s history. Meta\u2019s stock has plunged this year, and the company is trying to pare costs following several quarters of disappointing earnings and a slide in revenue. The reductions equal about 13% of the workforce, and Meta will extend its hiring freeze through the first quarter.<\/p>\n \u201cI want to take accountability for these decisions and for how we got here,\u201d CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in the statement. \u201cI know this is tough for everyone, and I\u2019m especially sorry to those impacted.\u201d<\/p>\n Opendoor<\/strong><\/p>\n Opendoor Technologies Inc. said that it\u2019s laying off about 550<\/strong> employees \u2014 roughly 18% of its headcount. The company, which practices a data-driven spin on home-flipping called iBuying, is coping with slowing housing demand because of higher mortgage rates.<\/p>\n Peloton<\/strong><\/p>\n Peloton Interactive Inc. laid off 500<\/strong> employees globally, or about 12% of the workforce, in October. It was the fourth time this year the company has cut staff. Along with other expense reduction measures, Peloton said the move will help it reach the break-even point on cash flow by the end of fiscal 2023.<\/p>\n \u201cI know many of you will feel angry, frustrated and emotionally drained by today\u2019s news, but please know this is a necessary step if we are going to save Peloton, and we are,\u201d CEO Barry McCarthy said in an October memo. \u201cOur goal is to control our own destiny and assure the business’s future viability.\u201d<\/p>\n Qualcomm<\/strong><\/p>\n Qualcomm said it\u2019s frozen hiring<\/strong> in response to a faster-than-feared decline in demand for phones that use its chips. It now expects smartphone shipments to decline in the double-digit per cent range this year, worse than its earlier outlook.<\/p>\n Salesforce<\/strong><\/p>\n Salesforce is focusing on margins as demand for its software products is slow. The company has cut hundreds<\/strong> of workers from sales teams as it looks to improve profitability. Since 2017, Salesforce has almost tripled its workforce.<\/p>\n Seagate<\/strong><\/p>\n Seagate Technology Holdings, the biggest computer hard drive maker, said it\u2019s paring about 3,000<\/strong> jobs. Computer suppliers, including Seagate and Intel, have been hard hit by a slowdown in hardware spending. CEO Dave Mosley said that customers are sitting on a pile of extra inventory, hurting orders and weighing on Seagate\u2019s financial performance. That necessitated cuts. \u201cWe have taken quick and decisive actions to respond to current market conditions and enhance long-term profitability,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Stripe<\/strong><\/p>\n Payments company Stripe, one of the world\u2019s most valuable startups, is cutting over 1,000<\/strong> jobs. The 14% staff reduction will return its headcount to almost 7,000. Co-founders Patrick and John Collison told staff that they must trim expenses more broadly as they prepare for \u201cleaner times.\u201d<\/p>\n Twitter<\/strong><\/p>\n The upheaval at Twitter has more to do with its recent buyout \u2014 and the accompanying debt \u2014 than economic concerns. But the company has suffered some of the deepest cuts of its peers right now. Elon Musk, who bought Twitter for $44 billion, eliminated about 3,700<\/strong> jobs by email. Musk also reversed the company\u2019s work-from-anywhere policy, asking remaining employees to report to offices.<\/p>\n \u201cRegarding Twitter\u2019s reduction in force, unfortunately, there is no choice when the company is losing over $4M\/day,\u201d Musk tweeted on 4 November 2022.<\/p>\n Upstart<\/strong><\/p>\n
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