Microsoft offers voluntary buyouts to about 60,000 employees amid AI spending push
publishers 73articles 106first reported 6 Oct, 18:16 UTCdeveloping since 7 Oct · 26 editions
Microsoft is offering voluntary buyouts to about 60,000 employees as it seeks to contain costs while investing heavily in artificial intelligence infrastructure.
The time-limited program covers more than a quarter of Microsoft’s global workforce of 223,000. The company said eligible employees in participating teams in Canada, India, the United Kingdom and the United States would receive details of the offer. According to Reuters, eligibility extends across teams including AI experiences, Copilot, finance, human resources, Xbox and Windows and Devices, while marketing, commercial business and security are excluded. Bloomberg reported that selected employees at the vice-president level and below are eligible, and Engadget said data-center teams are not included.
“This offer gives eligible employees who may be considering a future outside the company a new choice to make that transition now with support,” Chief People Officer Amy Coleman said in a staff memo. Microsoft described the initiative as voluntary and said it builds on lessons from an earlier retirement program.
The company has forecast $175 billion in capital spending for calendar 2026, much of it directed toward AI data centers and chips. Earlier in the year, Microsoft offered buyouts to about 9,000 U.S. employees. In July, it announced 4,800 job cuts while restructuring its Xbox business and divesting as many as five studios.
HOW THIS STORY WAS MADE
Written from 8 articles, 6 with the publisher's own text; 8 independent newsrooms once syndicated copies count as one; this version written 462 h after the record first saw the story; the editor kept it as written.
- Publishers
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- Source articles
- 106
- Given to the writer
- 8, 6 with the article's own text
- Independent newsrooms
- 8
- This version written
- 462 h after the record first saw the story
- Second model (editor)
- kept as written
- Publication gate
- passed
- Human review
- none
WHAT THE EDITOR DID
The second model checked the writer's draft against the same sources and published it as written.
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