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Earlier this month, LinkedIn announced it would introduce new AI-powered tools across the business. Today, it’s making a different kind of future-focused announcement: The company is laying off 668 employees.
We understand from a reliable source that the majority of the layoffs, around 563, will be in R&D, with teams across engineering, product, talent and finance affected.
The cuts, announced this morning, come five months after LinkedIn announced it was cutting 716 jobs, as well as phasing out its app in China. Today’s cuts bring the total number of layoffs at Microsoft-owned LinkedIn to 1,384. Overall, more than 242,000 people are projected to be laid off in the technology sector in 2023, according to employment tracker Layoffs.fyi.
The company said in an unsigned statement today, “While we are optimizing our organizational structure and streamlining our decision making, we are continuing to invest in the strategic priorities for our future and are ensuring That we continue to deliver value for our members and customers.” “We are committed to providing our full support to all affected employees during this transition and ensuring they are treated with care and respect.”
It didn’t specify what those strategic priorities were, but a refocus on hiring more AI talent is likely part of the mix.
After being acquired by Microsoft in 2016 for more than $26 billion, LinkedIn became significantly less transparent in terms of its finances and other operational metrics. In Microsoft’s July 2023 full-fiscal-year earnings report, the company reported that it has over 950 million members and over $15 billion in revenue, with Talent Solutions being the largest contributor with $7 billion+.
“wWe will continue to use AI to help our members and customers connect with opportunities and leverage the experiences of experts on the platform. “Our AI-powered collaborative articles are now the fastest-growing traffic driver on LinkedIn,” it said at the time.
more to come.
