LinkedIn cuts over 600 jobs as it shifts to AI
LinkedIn, the social networking site for professionals, announced that it will lay off more than 660 employees across various teams, which is more than 3% of its global workforce. This is the second major round of layoffs this year, after the company cut 716 jobs and closed its Chinese app InCareer in May.
The company said the layoffs are part of its efforts to optimize around artificial intelligence, which it has been investing in heavily. LinkedIn is one of the oldest and most successful social networking sites, with nearly 950 million users and over $15 billion in annual revenue. The company expects to incur about $75 million in severance and related costs in the fourth quarter of 2023.
“We are making these difficult decisions to optimize around our vision of creating economic opportunity for every member of the global workforce,” said Tomer Cohen, LinkedIn’s chief product officer, in a blog post. He added that the company will continue to invest in new products and features that leverage AI, such as content recommendations, skills assessments, and job matching.
LinkedIn’s CEO Ryan Roslansky also sent an email to employees, expressing his gratitude and support for those affected by the layoffs. “We are confident that we will emerge from this period stronger than ever,” he wrote. “We have a responsibility to…
