AI threatens jobs: Over 4.25 lakh tech employees lose jobs in 2023, layoffs continue during holidays
New Delhi, Dec 26 : As generative AI threatens millions of jobs, tech companies globally are now sacking employees even in the holiday season (they had spared workers in 2021 and 2022 festive seasons amid the global meltdown and started layoffs only in the first month of the New Year).
Tech companies, including startups, around the world have fired more than 425,000 employees in the last two years (till December 26, 2023), with more than 36,000 employees being sacked in India in the same time period.
Citing the global macroeconomic conditions, Big Tech firms and startups across the spectrum have sacked employees, and layoffs continue to happen.
According to the latest data from layoff.fyi, a website that tracks tech sector job cuts, 1,178 tech companies have laid off 260,771 lakh employees this year globally (as of December 26).
In 2022, 1,061 tech companies laid off 164,769 employees.
On average, about 582 employees lost their jobs every day in the last two years – or more than 24 workers every hour.
In terms of sector, retail-tech, consumer-tech and fintech were the ones which laid off the most employees in this year.
Paytm has just laid off over 1,000 employees in an effort to reduce costs and realign its businesses.
Social media platform ShareChat asked 200 employees, or about 15 per cent of its workforce, to go as part of strategic restructuring.
Game streaming platform Loco has laid off about 36 per cent of its workforce, or 40 employees, from its total staff strength of 110.
Google-backed edtech platform Adda247 laid off around 250-300 employees across verticals. Edtech major Byju’s laid off 4,000–5,000 employees in a “business restructuring exercise”.
The startup has eliminated more than 10,000 positions in the past two years.
Homegrown quick-grocery delivery provider Dunzo reportedly laid off at least “150-200” more employees amid severe cash crunch in September.
The startup had already sacked nearly 400 employees so far this year in two job cut rounds.
