In 2022, after decades of booming growth, technology companies in the United States began to lay off droves of employees. The announcements—which continued in 2023 and 2024, spanning from major corporations to startups—made constant headlines: Meta dropped 11,000 employees, 13% of its staff. Microsoft cut 10,000, Amazon 27,000.
Q&A: Researcher discusses the ‘cruel optimism’ of tech industry layoffs
