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Big Tech Is Spending Billions to Not Employ People
Business Insider • • business
Key Points:
- Among the "Magnificent Seven" tech companies, only Amazon disclosed severance costs, spending an estimated $2.7 billion through 2025, with $1.8 billion recorded in Q3 2025 amid large-scale layoffs.
- Oracle and Intel, outside the Magnificent Seven, reported the highest severance expenses among US tech giants, each spending about $1.8 billion related to significant workforce reductions and restructuring efforts.
- Intel cut over 25,000 jobs in 2025 as part of a turnaround strategy, spending approximately $70,000 per laid-off employee, while Oracle reduced its headcount by 21,000 as it refocused on cloud and AI investments.
- Dell and Cisco also incurred substantial severance costs, $569 million and $617 million respectively, aligning with efforts to streamline operations and prioritize AI-related investments.
- Chipmakers AMD and Micron reported comparatively lower severance expenses, at $79 million and $30 million respectively, reflecting smaller scale workforce reductions.
