Tech layoffs: How AI, regulation, and profits reshaped tech jobs in 2025

From IT services giants to venture-backed startups, India's tech industry saw widespread job cuts in 2025 as AI automation, gaming regulation and cost pressures reshaped hiring

As 2025 comes to an end, it is worth taking stock of India’s technology sector which had a year marked by disruption induced by artificial intelligence (AI), layoffs, and recalibration. After a decade defined by rapid hiring and expansion, the industry has gone through its sharpest workforce correction in recent years, driven by the adoption of AI, tighter regulation in key segments, and a renewed focus on profitability. Layoffs have cut across legacy IT services firms, consumer internet startups, and global technology majors operating in India.

 

Let’s take a look at some of the layoffs at major IT and tech firms in India and across the globe.

   

AI-led restructuring at Tata Consultancy Services 

The most closely watched development of the year came from Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), when the company reportedly reduced its workforce by about two per cent, affecting more than 12,000 employees. The downsizing is being carried out over several months and is expected to continue into 2026. The layoffs have largely hit mid-to-senior level roles as TCS pivots towards an AI-first delivery model.

 

Startups abandon growth-at-all-costs model 

India’s startup ecosystem also saw a decisive shift in 2025, with companies moving away from aggressive expansion and towards more automated operations. This transition translated into job cuts across several high-profile firms.

 

Ola Electric laid off more than 1,000 employees as it sought to rein in losses and improve margins following its public listing. The cuts were concentrated in front-end operations and functions increasingly handled through automation.

 

Zepto, the quick-commerce startup, reduced its workforce by about 300 employees even though it had acquired fresh capital during the year. The majority of the roles were outsourced to third-party contracts while the company adopted internal software for activities like invoicing and inventory replenishment to ease the manual workload.

 

VerSe Innovation, the content and short-video platform that owns Dailyhunt and Josh, dismissed approximately 350 employees. A funding crunch and increased AI usage in content moderation and curation were mentioned by the company as the main reasons for the move.

 

Gupshup, the conversational AI firm, downsized its staff by about 500 employees as it was reorganising its operations and targeting profitability, especially in the case of teams that had been added through recent acquisitions.

 

Gaming regulation delivers a sharp shock 

In August, the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act was enacted, which was a significant turning point for the industry as it practically prohibited real-money gaming. This decision paralysed a market worth approximately ₹2 trillion.

 

Dream11, a fantasy sports company, was able to avert mass layoffs by shifting about 500 engineers to the company's new AI and fintech projects. Nevertheless, the gaming ecosystem felt the impact extensively. It is estimated that almost 200,000 indirect jobs in payment processing, marketing, and support services will be affected by the ban.

 

Mobile Premier League, an online gaming platform, eliminated more than 600 positions, which was about 60 per cent of its Indian staff. The decision indicated a transition from cash-based gaming to advertising-led models. Meanwhile, regulatory changes impacted Gameskraft's core real-money gaming revenues that forced the company to slash nearly 400 jobs.

 

Amazon India affected by global cost cuts 

The year’s restructuring was not limited only to domestic firms. India’s job losses unfolded against a wider global wave of retrenchment in the technology sector. Amazon announced its largest-ever round of layoffs in October, cutting 14,000 corporate roles worldwide to free up resources for investments in areas such as AI.

 

As a spillover, the firm also eliminated about 1,000 corporate roles across its Indian operations in Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Gurugram during the final quarter of 2025.

 

Global tech layoffs set the backdrop 

Microsoft cut a total of 15,000 jobs during 2025, including 9,000 roles eliminated in July. Chipmaker Intel said it had largely completed a 15 per cent workforce reduction, aiming to end the year with about 75,000 core employees, down from nearly 100,000 at the end of 2024.

 

Apple carried out a rare round of layoffs in November, cutting dozens of sales roles in the United States, according to a Bloomberg report. Meta said in October that it would lay off 600 employees from its AI division to accelerate product development. Telecommunications firm Verizon announced plans to cut more than 13,000 jobs, while German industrial technology group Siemens reduced 5,600 roles in its Digital Industries business.

 

At Salesforce, chief executive Marc Benioff confirmed in September that 4,000 customer support roles had been cut with the help of AI tools, even as the company continued hiring in other areas. HP announced plans to reduce its global workforce by 4,000 to 6,000 roles through fiscal 2028.

 

As the year closes, the data from 2025 points to an industry in transition where hiring has slowed, roles are being redefined, and companies are reworking their cost structures.