Research & Development World

  • R&D World Home
  • Topics
    • Aerospace
    • Automotive
    • Biotech
    • Careers
    • Chemistry
    • Environment
    • Energy
    • Life Science
    • Material Science
    • R&D Management
    • Physics
  • Technology
    • 3D Printing
    • A.I./Robotics
    • Software
    • Battery Technology
    • Controlled Environments
      • Cleanrooms
      • Graphene
      • Lasers
      • Regulations/Standards
      • Sensors
    • Imaging
    • Nanotechnology
    • Scientific Computing
      • Big Data
      • HPC/Supercomputing
      • Informatics
      • Security
    • Semiconductors
  • R&D Market Pulse
  • R&D 100
    • Call for Nominations: The 2025 R&D 100 Awards
    • R&D 100 Awards Event
    • R&D 100 Submissions
    • Winner Archive
    • Explore the 2024 R&D 100 award winners and finalists
  • Resources
    • Research Reports
    • Digital Issues
    • R&D Index
    • Subscribe
    • Video
    • Webinars
  • Global Funding Forecast
  • Top Labs
  • Advertise
  • SUBSCRIBE

100 of the largest tech, telecom and innovation sector layoffs of 2024

By Brian Buntz | December 31, 2024

For many workers, it pays to have a job in an R&D or STEM-heavy field. The Bureau of Labor Statistics forecasts 10.4% growth in STEM jobs through 2033, more than double the overall employment growth rate of 4%. However, the technology sector has experienced significant restructuring in 2024, with approximately 150,000 job cuts across more than 525 companies through December 23, including nearly 10,000 cuts in Q4 alone. Hardware and electronics manufacturers have seen the most substantial impact, with over 26,800 layoffs. Biotech also remains under pressure, with multiple gene-editing and pharmaceutical players cutting deep. The transportation industry is close behind, while finance and consumer segments have each seen double-digit cuts as well.

[For 2025 layoffs, check out our ‘2025 R&D layoffs tracker.’ This piece was updated on December 31, 2024.]

For many workers, it pays to have a job in an R&D or STEM-heavy field. The Bureau of Labor Statistics forecasts 10.4% growth in STEM jobs through 2033, more than double the overall employment growth rate of 4%. But that doesn’t mean all sectors within STEM are thriving uniformly. Employment in several industrial sectors is likely to stagnate over the next decade, according to BLS projections. Tech layoffs in Silicon Valley have been at their highest level since the Dot Com Bubble burst. Industry tracking shows the tech industry has now reached nearly 150,000 job cuts across more than 525 companies as of early December, with over 9,700 cuts occurring in Q4 alone.

As we noted in the article “The great R&D reshuffle of 2024: AI drove significant restructuring across sectors,” many firms are making cuts even as they invest heavily in AI. Hardware and electronics manufacturers have seen the largest impact with over 26,800 layoffs. Intel alone is culling 15,000 workers while pouring billions into AI chip development. The biotech sector continues experiencing significant consolidation, too. See Editas Medicine’s December 12 announcement of a 180-person reduction (65% of workforce) — one of the highest percentage cuts recently in the sector. That company is also pivoting away from traditional gene-editing programs. This follows earlier biotech restructuring at Ginkgo Bioworks (400) and Bristol Myers (2,200). The transportation sector follows with more than 19,400 job cuts, while finance and consumer sectors each saw over 11,000 layoffs. Companies like SAP continue investing €2 billion annually in AI while planning to cut up to 8,000 jobs.

Tesla’s 14,000-person reduction is something of a microcosm of this shift. While companies are cutting jobs, many are pivoting toward emerging technologies and operational efficiency. Dell’s 12,500 job cuts in sales roles came alongside significant AI investments. AMD’s 1,000-person reduction occurred while raising its 2024 data center AI chip revenue forecast to more than $5 billion. Companies are not just cutting costs but reimagining their workforce composition — from Revel’s shift to a gig-worker model to Google’s strategy of moving certain roles overseas. The trend extends beyond tech. In biotech, companies like Exscientia cut 25% of their workforce while doubling down on AI-driven drug discovery. Ginkgo Bioworks announced cuts while launching new AI initiatives and a $250 million Google Cloud partnership.

growing occupations

[BLS]

# Company Layoffs Notes
1 Volkswagen AG 35,000 Major restructuring with continued R&D investment in EV technology; gradual reduction through 2030
2 Intel 15,000 15% workforce reduction for cost savings
3 Tesla 14,000 10% global reduction while maintaining core AI/autonomy R&D teams
4 Dell 12,500 10% reduction, restructuring for AI initiatives
5 Cisco 9,850 Two rounds: 4,250 + 5,600 (infrastructure/security reorganization)
6 Amazon 9,000 Cuts in advertising, cloud, and Twitch
7 SAP 8,000 2.5% reduction, focus on cloud business
8 Siemens 5,000 Cuts in factory automation division
9 Verizon 4,800 Voluntary separation program through March 2025
10 Microsoft 4,050 Multiple rounds in 2024: Gaming division (2,550 across Xbox/Activision Blizzard), Azure/Mission Engineering (1,500), while maintaining AI development focus
11 Toshiba 4,000 6% reduction in Japanese workforce
12 Xerox 3,015 15% workforce reduction
13 Amdocs 3,000* *Layoff range between 1,500 and 3,000 (5-10% of workforce)
14 Telia 3,000 15% reduction for cost savings
15 VMware 2,837 Infrastructure layoffs
16 Tata Steel 2,800 Port Talbot plant transition to electric furnaces
17 Telstra 2,800 Primarily enterprise division cuts
18 PayPal 2,500 9% reduction, focusing on AI and blockchain initiatives
19 ThyssenKrupp 2,370 Restructuring for efficiency
20 Bristol Myers 2,200 6% of total workforce
21 UKG 2,200 14% reduction in enterprise software division
22 FedEx 2,000 European operations cost reduction
23 Ricoh 2,000 Global restructuring initiative
24 Unity 1,800 25% workforce reduction
25 Intuit 1,800 10% cut, shifting focus to AI
26 Mercury Marine 1,700 Partial layoffs due to sales decline
27 Ford 1,600 Valencia plant reduction
28 Natwest 1,600 Restructuring effort
29 Nike 1,600 Company-wide restructuring
30 Northvolt 1,600 Swedish battery maker cost reduction
31 Twitter/X 1,500 Multiple rounds post-Musk acquisition
32 Infineon 1,400 Manufacturing layoffs
33 Cue Health 1,300 Healthcare layoffs across multiple rounds
34 Ericsson 1,200 Swedish operations reduction
35 OpenText 1,200 2% reduction while adding 800 new positions in sales, engineering and services; part of $200M optimization plan
36 Vodafone Spain 1,200 Regional restructuring
37 Stellantis 1,100 Toledo plant with note on reversal
38 Takeda 1,100 Massachusetts operations reduction
39 Bayer 1,100 Primarily management positions
40 Salesforce 1,000 Two 2024 rounds: 700 in January (~1% global) + 300 in July. Part of broader cost-cutting measures.
41 GM 1,000 Global white-collar reduction focused on streamlining operations while protecting core EV development
42 Citrix 1,000 12% reduction across business units with 500 positions transitioned to outsourced capacity; focus on enterprise customers
43 Google 1,000 Cuts in Flutter, Dart, and Python teams
44 Scale AI 1,000 Contract workers terminated via email
45 Dyson 1,000 UK operations reduction
46 AMD 1,000 Shift focus to AI chip dev (combined rounds)
47 IBM 1,000 Company restructuring
48 Klarna 1,000 AI integration-related reduction
49 Block 1,000 10% reduction, maintaining crypto/blockchain R&D
50 Sony PlayStation 900 8% of global PlayStation workforce
51 SolarEdge 900 16% reduction in solar technology division
52 Kenvue 880 J&J spinoff company reduction
53 EA 670 Project cancellations, office reductions
54 Freshworks 660 13% reduction in enterprise software/AI teams
55 Apple 614 EV project and display team cuts
56 Take-Two 579 5% reduction across game studios
57 Motional 550 40% cut in autonomous vehicle development
58 Dropbox 527 20% reduction, maintaining core cloud infra
59 Ola Electric 500 Layoffs in transportation sector
60 Enphase Energy 500 Layoffs in energy sector
61 Chegg 441 23% reduction in EdTech division
62 DocuSign 440 6% reduction while maintaining security R&D
63 UIPath 420 10% reduction in automation tech teams
64 Ginkgo Bioworks 400 Biotech/synthetic biology layoffs
65 Lucid Motors 400 Transportation/EV technology layoffs
66 Okta 400 7% reduction in security infrastructure division
67 Moxion Power 350 Energy sector layoffs
68 Udemy 280 EdTech platform restructuring with AI integration
69 Proofpoint 280 Security software/infrastructure reduction
70 Miro 275 18% reduction in collaborative software dev
71 Pure Storage 275 Data storage technology reorganization
72 RealPage 260 4% reduction in property tech development
73 WeTransfer 260 75% reduction, maintaining core file transfer infra
74 ChargePoint 250 15% cut in EV charging infrastructure dev
75 Akamai 250 2% reduction in CDN and cloud security division
76 Unacademy 250 EdTech platform development restructuring
77 Grammarly 230 Restructuring of AI/NLP development teams
78 Bungie 220 17% workforce reduction, heavy R&D in game dev
79 Kiwi.com 216 18% reduction, travel tech with proprietary algorithms
80 Personio 215 6% reduction, HR tech with significant software dev
81 LinkedIn 202 1% reduction in AI/ML teams
82 ABBYY 200 Data/AI sector, strong R&D in document processing
83 OrCam 200 Healthcare technology layoffs
84 Xendit 200 Fintech infrastructure dev reorganization
85 Forward 200 100% reduction, healthcare tech division closure
86 23andMe 200 40% reduction in genetics R&D
87 ShareFile 199 Enterprise software division reorganization
88 Five9 190 7% reduction in cloud computing division
89 Avaya 180 3% reduction in enterprise communications tech
90 Planet 180 17% reduction in space technology operations
91 Editas Medicine 180 65% reduction in gene-editing R&D operations
92 Samsung SDI America 179 Battery manufacturing & advanced R&D layoffs at Auburn Hills, MI facility
93 Discord 170 17% reduction in platform dev teams
94 Runtastic 170 Fitness tech platform restructuring
95 ConsenSys 163 20% reduction in blockchain development
96 OutSystems 150 8% reduction in low-code platform dev
97 Coursera 150 10% reduction in EdTech dev
98 Zoom 150 2% reduction in video communications technology
99 HealthifyMe 150 27% reduction in health tech development
100 Criteo 140 4% reduction in adtech and ML teams
101 GoPro 139 15% reduction in hardware/software integration

 

Related Articles Read More >

Will consumer AI hardware be the next R&D battlefield?
Detailed view of a PCR testing kit for SARS-CoV-2 with an epidemiologist in protective gear analyzing samples to detect specific viral areas causing COVID-19 pneumonia --ar 16:9 --style raw --v 6.1 Job ID: 7e698e8b-3ac0-4058-9c69-cb803819f39e
When data goes missing: How poor data management can undermining research reproducibility
OpenAI spends $6.5 billion on Jony Ive-founded startup io
H100 image from NVIDIA
After reportedly pursuing Shanghai R&D site, Nvidia calls U.S. GPU export controls a ‘failure’
rd newsletter
EXPAND YOUR KNOWLEDGE AND STAY CONNECTED
Get the latest info on technologies, trends, and strategies in Research & Development.
RD 25 Power Index

R&D World Digital Issues

Fall 2024 issue

Browse the most current issue of R&D World and back issues in an easy to use high quality format. Clip, share and download with the leading R&D magazine today.

Research & Development World
  • Subscribe to R&D World Magazine
  • Enews Sign Up
  • Contact Us
  • About Us
  • Drug Discovery & Development
  • Pharmaceutical Processing
  • Global Funding Forecast

Copyright © 2025 WTWH Media LLC. All Rights Reserved. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of WTWH Media
Privacy Policy | Advertising | About Us

Search R&D World

  • R&D World Home
  • Topics
    • Aerospace
    • Automotive
    • Biotech
    • Careers
    • Chemistry
    • Environment
    • Energy
    • Life Science
    • Material Science
    • R&D Management
    • Physics
  • Technology
    • 3D Printing
    • A.I./Robotics
    • Software
    • Battery Technology
    • Controlled Environments
      • Cleanrooms
      • Graphene
      • Lasers
      • Regulations/Standards
      • Sensors
    • Imaging
    • Nanotechnology
    • Scientific Computing
      • Big Data
      • HPC/Supercomputing
      • Informatics
      • Security
    • Semiconductors
  • R&D Market Pulse
  • R&D 100
    • Call for Nominations: The 2025 R&D 100 Awards
    • R&D 100 Awards Event
    • R&D 100 Submissions
    • Winner Archive
    • Explore the 2024 R&D 100 award winners and finalists
  • Resources
    • Research Reports
    • Digital Issues
    • R&D Index
    • Subscribe
    • Video
    • Webinars
  • Global Funding Forecast
  • Top Labs
  • Advertise
  • SUBSCRIBE