Google recently laid off at least 200 employees from its Core teams, responsible for building the technical foundation behind the company’s flagship products and ensuring user safety. The layoffs included engineering positions at the company’s offices in Sunnyvale, California, with many roles being moved to Mexico and India. This restructuring is part of an ongoing effort by Alphabet, Google’s parent company, to streamline operations and increase efficiency, as well as to build teams closer to users in key markets with cheaper labor costs.
The layoffs are part of a broader downsizing effort that began last year when Alphabet announced plans to eliminate about 6% of its workforce due to a downturn in the online ad market. Despite a rebound in digital advertising, Alphabet has continued to downsize across multiple organizations this year. Chief Financial Officer Ruth Porat announced restructuring within the finance department, including layoffs and moving positions to Bangalore and Mexico City. These changes come as Alphabet reports its fastest growth rate since early 2022, with improving profit margins and a recent announcement of its first-ever dividend and a $70 billion buyback.
Google’s Core teams have been key to the company’s developer tools, an area that is being streamlined and enhanced with the incorporation of more AI into products. The reorganization is aimed at improving the efficiency of developer tools by leveraging generative AI, such as Google’s Gemini, which is changing the nature of software development. The layoffs also include the governance and protected data group, which is central to addressing regulatory challenges facing the company, particularly regarding developments in AI and increased scrutiny by lawmakers worldwide.
Google is preparing for its annual developer conference, Google I/O, where new developer products and tools will be unveiled. The changes announced by Vice President of Google Developer Ecosystem, Asim Husain, are in service of broader company goals, focusing on expanding work to other locations and aligning resources to prioritize product development. Security Engineering Vice President Pankaj Rohatgi also mentioned role eliminations and proposed changes to optimize for business goals. Senior Vice President overseeing search, Prabhakar Raghavan, acknowledged increased competition, a more challenging regulatory environment, and slower organic growth as Google’s “new operating reality.”
The European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) has gone into effect, further emphasizing regulatory challenges for tech companies like Google. Evan Kotsovinos, Google’s Vice President of Governance and Protected Data, highlighted the team’s need to respond to escalating regulatory focus and the importance of moving faster in the face of these challenges. While Google has confirmed the Core reorganization and layoffs, the company is offering affected employees the opportunity to apply for open roles within Google and access outplacement services. The company remains focused on responsibly investing in its biggest priorities and capitalizing on significant opportunities ahead by making changes to increase efficiency and alignment of resources to key product priorities.
