Heaptalk, Jakarta — US-based tech company Microsoft reportedly plans to lay off workforces in its Azure cloud for Operators and Mission Engineering as many as 1,500 workforces.
The Azure for Operators and Mission Engineering team is part of an organization formed in 2021 to handle Microsoft’s ambitious projects. The organization is called Strategic Mission and Technologies (SMT). SMT is known for quantum computing, space, and other bleeding-edge technology projects. This division has around 221,000 workforces worldwide.
However, Business Insider separately revealed that Microsoft Azure’s new layoff is part of a plan to invest more in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and cease previews for Azure Operator 5G Core (AO5GC) and Azure Operator Call Protection.
In January last year, this tech company also massively terminated its employees, attaining about 10,000 employees, or 5% of its then workforce, as part of an effort to reduce costs. These job cuts followed a smaller layoff round in July 2022 of about 181,000 employees, representing 1% of the total.
“Organizational and workforce adjustments are necessary and regular part of managing our business. We will continue to prioritize and invest in strategic growth areas for our future and in support of our customers and partners,” Microsoft’s spokesperson said, as Reuters reported.
Microsoft’s spokesperson, Craig Cincotta, also said the company intends to cut multiple employees in its HoloLens 2 and Mixed Reality Department. The vendor is still selling the device and committed to the U.S. Department of Defense’s Integrated Visual Augmentation System (IVAS) program and Windows 365 mixed reality hardware.
“We will continue to invest in W365 to reach the broader Mixed Reality hardware ecosystem. We will trade HoLoLens 2 while supporting existing HoloLens 2 customers and partners,” Craig said, cited in the Verge.
