Major tech layoffs top 175,000 midyear 2026 amid AI shift
Big changes hit the tech world in 2026, with more than 175,000 people laid off by midyear. Companies like Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, Meta, and others trimmed their teams as they shifted focus to artificial intelligence (AI) and tried to cut costs.
Some layoffs, like at Oracle, were tied directly to AI technologies, while firms like Monday.com and Cloudflare doubled down on AI projects.
Others, such as Lucid and Epic Games, pointed to improving profitability amid increasing competition and declining Fortnite engagement, respectively.
Gavin Newsom launches AI workforce tracker
With so many jobs affected by AI shifts, California Gov. Gavin Newsom launched a tool to track how AI is changing the workforce.
It is part of a bigger push to understand (and hopefully manage) the real impact of AI on jobs as the industry keeps moving toward automation and new tech priorities.