Former and current Microsofties react to the latest round of layoffs

Microsoft's latest round of layoffs has triggered an outpouring of emotion from inside and outside the company, with at least one former staffer asking, "How many billions must be burned in the AI furnace before this stops?"

To be clear, Microsoft has not stated the latest round of cuts is anything to do with its obsession with all things AI, however, axing more than 9,000 from the workforce is an interesting approach from a business which insists that implementing Copilot tech means customers can boost productivity "rather than cutting headcount."

Former Microsoft staffer, Ned Pyle, summed up the feelings of many with a simple question on the Bluesky social media platform: "jfc again?"

"How many billions must be burned in the AI furnace before this stops?"

Pyle, a former principal program manager at Microsoft and now Enterprise Storage Officer at Tuxera, is famous for his efforts to eliminate the outdated and insecure SMBv1 protocol.

Current Microsoft staffers have also been left aghast at the latest bloodletting. Veteran Microsoft engineer Larry Osterman wrote: "I know some folks in Xbox who are terrified," and added, "We *think* our team is likely safe after a 10 percent haircut last time around, but it's scary."

Those Xbox folk were right to be terrified. According to Bloomberg, the company's King division, which makes Candy Crush, is cutting 10 percent of its staff. Games such as Perfect Dark and Everwild have been cancelled, and the studio behind Forza Motorsport is also on the receiving end of staff reductions.

In answer to the question of who will be left at Microsoft once the culling is complete, one staffer, a purveyor of ceramic dinosaurs who goes by the handle of @threddyrex.com, commented, "it'll be three copilots in a trench coat running the show."

While Microsoft might insist the layoffs are all about optimizing its operations and implementing "organizational changes necessary to best position the company and teams for success in a dynamic marketplace," some observers are not so sure.

Cybersecurity expert, and slayer of the WannaCry malware, Marcus Hutchins, remarked, "Yet more companies laying off employees not because AI is replacing them, but because they need more money to fund their AI.

"I can't remember the last time I saw sunk cost fallacy at this scale."

The beatings seem set to continue until AI adoption improves. ®