Now, Meta plans to cut 10 per cent of its workforce, roughly 8,000 employees, while also shutting another 6,000 open roles, according to an internal memo, as the company ramps up spending on artificial intelligence. It remains unclear whether India will be affected by this latest round of cuts.
At Microsoft, employees were informed for the first time that the company would offer voluntary retirement to about 7 per cent of its US workforce, which stands at roughly 125,000 people. These announcements follow Oracle cutting around 30,000 jobs globally, with India being among the hardest-hit regions.
March 2026 alone recorded the highest number of layoffs worldwide. Data from Layoffs.fyi shows that 45,800 employees lost their jobs during that month, far surpassing the previous spike in January 2024, when 34,137 jobs were cut.
In April, so far, that figure stands at 10,525.
What stands out this time is not only the scale of the cuts, but how concentrated they have become. The March layoffs were driven by just 29 companies, compared with 123 companies in January 2024, a sign of deeper workforce reductions concentrated among fewer firms.
The cuts, largely framed as cost-saving measures by big technology companies, are unfolding as these firms pour billions into expanding their AI ambitions and enlarging their data-centre footprint.
The relentless cycle of layoffs is also hurting sentiment in India’s technology hiring market. “The overall sentiment on hiring continues to be one of caution and general conservation at both employee and employer ends,” said Kamal Karanth, co-founder of Xpheno, a specialist staffing firm. “The sustained overall sluggish trend of active jobs from key hiring sectors in the market continues, and this moderated pace and tone has come to be accepted by all stakeholders. Lowered hiring action, like an extended winter, continues to keep talent cautiously indoors without risking venturing for adventure into the market.”
Karanth added that as recruiter calls decline, professionals have also become more selective about pursuing new opportunities. He said repeated rounds of restructuring across the industry had also changed how candidates approached conversations around hiring stability and job security.
“Candidates are far more prepared to discuss and deal with them (layoffs). That said, caution from candidates in hiring conversations is limited to only when the hiring is for and from an enterprise that’s dealing with a layoff at that point in time. This is a rare scenario when the enterprise is offloading on one hand and also taking on talent on the other. Candidates do not, and also cannot, exercise over-caution by extending layoff concerns to adjacent areas,” he said.
Yet even as stories of sudden exits and shrinking teams become increasingly common, the appeal of big technology firms remains largely intact for many professionals.
Sri Kumar (name changed), a technology professional who moved from India to Dubai in search of better opportunities, said he would still readily join one of the major technology companies if given the chance.
“It all boils down to whether the company is offering a decent hike and a preferred location,” he said. “If that is sorted out, anyone will consider joining despite the current global situation around AI and fears of potential layoffs in the future.”
He added that even a short stint at one of the large technology firms can carry long-term career value. “Even if an employee is laid off, having these companies on your résumé helps a lot. It’s like an IIT tag. Startups pay good salaries if you have worked with one of these tech firms. Anyway, people in tech, especially those with less than 10 years of experience, often consider leaving an organisation after spending an average of three years there,” he said.
For now, however, India may offer some insulation from the worst of the cuts. Karanth said large technology companies had already spent the past six to eight quarters balancing and optimising their hiring in the country. “We have reason to believe that the Indian outfits have been well optimised and have low-to-no flab left to shed in the event of layoffs aimed at offsetting costs,” he concluded.
 "AI push deepens layoffs as Big Tech cuts workforce, trims hiring globally")