Google parent company Alphabet to lay off 12,000 employees

Google is laying off 12,000 of its employees, parent company Alphabet announced on Friday.

The layoffs come after similar job cuts at other tech giants, including Microsoft, Amazon, Facebook and Twitter.

What did Google say about the layoffs?

"We've decided to reduce our workforce by approximately 12,000 roles," Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai said.

Pichai said that the cuts were in response to a changing "economic reality" and that the hires had been made during "periods of dramatic growth."

"We've undertaken a rigorous review across product areas and functions to ensure that our people and roles are aligned with our highest priorities as a company," Pichai said. "The roles we're eliminating reflect the outcome of that review."

"The fact that these changes will impact the lives of Googlers weighs heavily on me, and I take full responsibility for the decisions that led us here," he added.

Pichai said that the layoffs "cut across" product areas, functions, levels and regions.

Layoffs across tech industry

Google is not the only tech giant to have seen major layoffs in recent months.

The move comes a day after Microsoft said it would also reduce staff numbers by 10,000, equivalent to nearly 5% of its workforce.

Amazon said earlier this month that it would make 18,000 layoffs, and Facebook owner Meta announced in November that it would be cutting 11,000 positions, or around 13% of its workforce.

Twitter saw massive job cuts after Elon Musk, who is also the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, took the helm of the company late last year.