According to technology media The Information, Microsoft executives have recently informed core business units such as the cloud computing department and the North American sales team that the hiring of new employees has been officially suspended. This move aims to control labor costs to improve profit margins, offsetting the company's significant investment in artificial intelligence infrastructure. However, teams responsible for developing key AI tools such as Copilot are not affected by this freeze and are still hiring normally, indicating Microsoft's extreme emphasis on resource allocation.

A Cost "Hard Brake" at the End of the Fiscal Year: Investor Pressure for Growth Returns

This hiring freeze comes at a critical juncture for Microsoft's June fiscal year-end. Although Microsoft has been active in the AI field, its cloud computing business growth slowed in the fourth quarter of last year, combined with record-breaking artificial intelligence capital expenditures, causing widespread concern among investors.

Currently, Microsoft is facing intense market pressure and needs to prove that its multi-billion-dollar investment in AI can translate into tangible financial returns. As of June 2025, Microsoft has approximately 228,000 employees worldwide, and this "streamlining" is seen as a way to signal confidence in profitability to the market.

The Silicon Valley Layoff Trend Continues to Spread: AI Becomes a Tool for Efficiency

Microsoft is not alone; major tech giants are all undergoing aggressive personnel restructuring. Amazon has laid off about 30,000 office staff over the past six months and has explicitly stated that the layoffs are partly to "pay back" the excessive expansion during the pandemic and partly due to improved overall operational efficiency through AI.

Meta also plans to carry out large-scale layoffs, which may reach up to 20% in proportion. These developments indicate that as AI technology becomes more deeply integrated, tech companies are shifting from "scale expansion" to "efficiency first," with AI being both a source of cost pressure and an important tool for optimizing human resources.