Google is trimming its workforce once again but just not with pink slips. Instead, the tech giant is leaning on voluntary buyouts, offering US-based employees in several divisions the option to leave quietly with severance.
According to a report by CNBC, the latest wave targets teams across Knowledge & Information (K&I)—which includes search, ads, and commerce—as well as central engineering, marketing, and research. While the exact number of exits remains unclear, internal memos reviewed by CNBC suggest the buyouts are a strategic push rather than a desperate purge.
As per the report, Google’s K&I chief Nick Fox put it bluntly in a company memo and told employees: if you’re disengaged or underperforming, this is your way out. But if you’re thriving, stay the course. “We have ambitious plans and tons to get done,” he wrote, as per the report.
This is part of a broader cultural shift at Google. Since mass layoffs in early 2023 rattled employee trust, buyouts have become the preferred tool for managing headcount—quiet, less dramatic, and arguably more humane. Already this year, voluntary exits have been offered in hardware, HR, finance, legal, and now core product teams.
But there’s a catch: many of these offers are tied to new return-to-office mandates. Remote employees living within 50 miles of a Google campus are being nudged—if not shoved—back into hybrid schedules.
Meanwhile, Google is tightening internal training budgets, prioritising AI skill-building over “nice-to-have” programs. The subtext is clear: if you’re not aligned with Google’s AI-forward strategy, this may not be your place much longer.
With buyouts replacing layoffs, Google’s restructuring has become quieter—but no less consequential.
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