Google layoffs hit even robots who cleaned tables, opened doors

(Image credit: Everyday Robots)

Budget cuts at Google have put not just humans but even robots out of service. The tech giant will shut down a team that trained more than a 100 robots to open doors, clean cafeteria tables and sort trash, according to the Wired website.

The "Everyday Robots" were a project under Alphabet's "X -
The Moonshot Factory" program. The aim was to build general-purpose learning robots that could operate independently and safely in unstructured environments.

An official told Wired that Everyday Robots won't be a separate project anymore.

“Some of the technology and part of the team will be consolidated into existing robotics efforts within Google Research," said Denise Gamboa,  Everyday Robots' director of marketing and communications.

The Everyday Robots team had over 200 employees, including those who designed and trained robots. Each of the robots is estimated to have cost Google thousands of dollars.

But keeping them wasn't feasible. Along with Waymo -- Google's bet on autonomous driving technology -- Everyday Robots lost over $1 billion in 2022, according to Wired.

Some say Everyday Robots' closure was premature.

“We are starting to see that robots can do meaningful work in a general way," former Google employee told Wired. "I don't think it’s a sign of a lack of progress. With the right focus, in five years you could have a meaningful product in the market.”

Google announced large-scale restructuring in January, that included slashing 12,000 jobs globally.

The layoffs followed massive job cuts at Microsoft, Meta, Amazon and Twitter as the tech sector prepared for economic downturn. Among the Big Five, only Apple managed to avert layoffs.

A month after announcing layoffs, Google reported glum results for the last quarter of 2022.

It reported $76 billion in revenue and a $13.6 billion-profit -- both below what it earned the year before.

There was also a drop in Google's advertising sales.

"After a period of significant acceleration in digital spending during the pandemic, the macro economic climate has become more challenging," Google CEO Sundar Pichai during an earnings call.