The move to lay off employees, mostly across the Xbox and Edge divisions, comes as tech giants bear the brunt of inflation and other economic headwinds. Credit: Magdalena Petrova After reportedly committing to nearly double its budget for salary hikes in May in order to retain employees, Microsoft this week laid off close to 1,000 employees, according to reports from Axios, Business Insider, and other news organizations. A report by The Washington Post said that Microsoft employee and industry veteran Greg Chapman had confirmed the dismissal of some of the employees in his Studio Alpha team on Twitter before making the account private. Studio Alpha develops gaming techniques to address government and military issues. A Microsoft employee, named KC Lemson, took to Twitter to say that she was dismissed from the company on Monday. In addition to the Studio Alpha team, layoffs affected employees in other areas of the company including the Edge and Xbox teams, according to reports. While the company didn’t confirm or deny the layoffs, it issued a statement: “Like all companies, we evaluate our business priorities on a regular basis, and make structural adjustments accordingly. We will continue to invest in our business and hire in key growth areas in the year ahead.” This is not the first time that the company has promised to hire people after news of layoffs hit the streets. In July, after reports surfaced that Microsoft fired nearly 1% of its 180,000 employees globally, the company said it would continue to hire more people. Tech companies continue to downsize or restructure Several technology companies have continued to lay off employees in the last few months with several such as Apple, Google and Meta indicating they would pause hiring and cut costs. Last week, Oracle cut 201 employees, including data scientists and developers, from its Redwood Shores office, just months after dismissing employees from its Bay Area offices. These layoffs come at a time when hiring for IT jobs are slowing due to worries about an economic downturn. Even though there is still overall job growth in the sector, fears of a recession have throttled the positive trend, according to an analysis of US Bureau of Labor Statistics by Janco, a US-based international consulting firm. Related content news Businesses lack AI strategy despite employee interest — Microsoft survey Microsoft’s fourth annual Work Trend Index survey shows that workers are coming to grips with generative AI tools, but leaders aren’t convinced they have a proper deployment strategy in place. By Matthew Finnegan May 08, 2024 6 mins Microsoft Generative AI IT Skills news analysis Apple Silicon sets scene for a new AI ecosystem With its new iPads, Apple presses home the message that Apple Silicon is built for AI. By Jonny Evans May 08, 2024 12 mins Apple Generative AI iPad news The CHIPS Act money: A timeline of grants to chipmakers The Department of Commerce is divvying up $52 billion in the hopes of spurring on-shore chip manufacturing in the US. Here's what's been allocated and where the money is going. By Lucas Mearian May 08, 2024 5 mins CPUs and Processors Government Manufacturing Industry reviews Arc browser for Windows — better than Chrome? This might just be the best web browser for power users. But you’ll have to rewire your brain. By Chris Hoffman May 08, 2024 13 mins Windows Browsers Productivity Software Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe