LinkedIn Sacks Hundreds of Workers in Effort to Optimize AI Efforts

VAM News Update

LinkedIn to Lay Off Hundreds of Workers in Effort to Optimize AI Efforts
Microsoft-owned LinkedIn has announced that it will be laying off approximately 3% of its workforce, amounting to about 688 roles across its engineering, product, talent, and finance teams.

This comes after the company previously announced over 700 layoffs in May, as well as additional job cuts from parent company Microsoft. The layoffs are part of broader efforts at the company to optimize its operations around artificial intelligence (AI).

The job positions being eliminated are a result of LinkedIn’s focus on incorporating AI into its platform. Earlier this month, the company released new AI product features, including AI-assisted candidate discovery for recruiters and AI-powered coaching for premium subscribers. The goal is to improve efficiency, transparency, and accountability by reducing layering within the organization.

Despite the layoffs, LinkedIn continues to experience growth in its revenue, which surpassed $15 billion for the first time in the fiscal year that ended in June. However, the growth rate has been slowing for eight consecutive quarters, with a 5% growth rate in the second quarter. Membership growth, on the other hand, has been accelerating over the past two years.

In a memo to staff, LinkedIn executives Mohak Shroff and Tomer Cohen stated, “As we continue to execute on our FY24 plan, we need to also evolve how we work and what we prioritize so we can deliver on the key initiatives we’ve identified that will have an outsized impact in achieving our business goals.”

While talent changes and layoffs are undoubtedly difficult, LinkedIn views them as necessary in order to adapt to the evolving landscape of the professional networking industry and maintain its position as a leader.