Share to ClassroomMicrosoft Cuts 4,800 Jobs, Hits Xbox
Microsoft said on Monday that it will cut about 4,800 jobs. That is around 2.1% of all its workers. The biggest cuts are in Xbox, the part of the company that makes video games. About 1,600 Xbox jobs went at once, and another 1,600 will go by 2027. That is about one in five Xbox workers. The company will also sell or separate five game studios.
Asha Sharma, the new head of Xbox, said the business was not healthy. She said it made far less profit than other game companies. Xbox has cut jobs many times since 2024, when Microsoft bought the game maker Activision Blizzard for $68.7billion. Its Game Pass service, which lets people play many games for a monthly fee, has grown more slowly than the company hoped. Microsoft is now spending a lot of money on artificial intelligence (AI) . But it said AI was not taking these jobs.
Many technology companies are cutting jobs this year. One study counted 52,050 tech job losses in early 2026, 40% more than a year before. Some studios were happy: two will become independent again, and two others found new owners. Microsoft shares fell about 1.5% on Monday. Sharma promised to make Xbox grow again by 2027.
