Alphabet Inc To Lay Off 12,000 Workers

New York: Google’s parent Alphabet Inc is cutting about 12,000 jobs or 6% of its workforce.

The technology sector said in a staff memo Friday that it reels from layoffs and companies stake their futures on artificial intelligence (AI).

Alphabet’s shares were up nearly 3% in pre-market trading.

The cuts come at a delicate moment for the U.S. company, which has long been the leader in key areas of AI research.

The news comes during a period of economic uncertainty as well as technological promise, in which Google and Microsoft have been investing in a fledgling area of software known as generative artificial intelligence.

Sundar Pichai, Alphabet’s CEO, said in the note, “I am confident about the huge opportunity in front of us thanks to the strength of our mission, the value of our products and services, and our early investments in AI.”