Tech industry layoffs roll on with MS job cuts Microsoft has announced plans to lay off around 3% of its global workforce, just weeks after the Windows maker posted profits that beat Wall Street expectations. The tech giant didn’t disclose the total amount of lost jobs, but it will amount to about 6,000 people […]
Tech industry layoffs roll on with MS job cuts
Microsoft has announced plans to lay off around 3% of its global workforce, just weeks after the Windows maker posted profits that beat Wall Street expectations.
The tech giant didn’t disclose the total amount of lost jobs, but it will amount to about 6,000 people – the largest round of layoffs at the firm since 2023.
“We continue to implement organisational changes necessary to best position the company for success in a dynamic marketplace,” a statement from the company reads.
It comes amid deepening uncertainty in the sector. So far this year, more than 22,000 workers have been the victim of reductions across the tech industry, with a staggering 16,084 cuts taking place in February alone, according to independent layoffs tracker Layoffs.fyi.
Google, Meta, Siemens, and HPE have all announced plans to reduce staff overheads.
US copyright chief dismissed amid AI IP tensions
President Trump has fired US Copyright Office chief Shira Perlmutter, reportedly over her resistance to loosening IP protections for AI companies.
The move saw Trump continue a firing spree at the Library of Congress, with the previous Librarian of Congress, Carla Hayden, fired on Thursday of last week.
The move has drawn criticism from rights groups and Joe Morelle – the top Democrat on the House Administration. Morelle alleged it is “no coincidence [Trump] acted less than a day after [Perlmutter] refused to rubber-stamp Elon Musk’s efforts to mine troves of copyrighted works to train AI models.”
Perlmutter, who was appointed by Hayden in 2020, and her office had recently issued a lengthy report about artificial intelligence that included some questions and concerns about the usage of copyrighted materials by AI technology.
Microsoft unveils job cuts while Trump axes copyright chief over AI spat
Bat VC launches $100m fund for AI startups
Bat VC, a New York-based venture capital firm founded by Indian tech veterans from Yahoo, Twitter India, and Intuit, has announced the launch of its second fund with a target of $100 million.
The fund aims to support early-stage startups in AI, fintech, and enterprise sectors across the US and India, offering investment totals between $3 million and $5 million. This move builds upon the firm’s first $8.2 million fund.
US tech firms cash in on Trump’s Middle East tour with Gulf deals
Nvidia and AMD are among US tech firms to announce new AI deals in the Middle East as President Donald Trump continues his tour of the Gulf region.
Chipmaker Nvidia has announced an agreement to sell hundreds of thousands of AI chips in Saudi Arabia, with a first tranche of 18,000 of its newest “Blackwell” chips going to Humain, an AI startup just launched by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund PIF.
Humain has also struck a deal with AMD worth around $10 billion, while fellow processor producer Qualcomm has signed a memorandum of understanding to develop data centre processors with the Saudi company.
Trump began his Gulf tour on Tuesday with a meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, in which the President unveiled investment commitments of $600 billion from the Gulf kingdom.
M&S confirms customer data breached in cyber-attack
Marks and Spencer has confirmed that customer data was breached in the recent cyber-attack that took down several of the retailer’s systems.
The British High Street retail giant said personal information taken could include telephone numbers, home addresses and dates of birth, as well as online order histories. However, it has said no payment, card details or passwords were accessed by hackers.
Ongoing problems are costing the retailer £43m a week in lost sales, according to analysis from Bank of America Global Research.
The breach which hit M&S three weeks ago, was one of a number cyber-attacks against British retailers, with the Co-op and Harrods also reporting incidents.
