Mark Zuckerberg Explains Why Tech Layoffs Are Happening (Feb 2024)

Its been barely 50 days since new year 2024 began, and the tech industry has already suffered more than 30,000 layoffs. And with layoffs showing no signs of slowdown, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has come forward with a theory to explain why tech layoffs are happening.

The billionaire says that companies are realizing that, while (layoffs are) painful, there are benefits to being "leaner." In an interview  recently, the Meta CEO said companies are still adjusting to the post-pandemic era, as per Business Insider report. 

E-commerce sales skyrocketed during the pandemic, leading to significant increases in online advertising revenue. However, sales growth slowed and ad rates returned to normal as consumers went back to the stores and the economy stabilized. Numerous businesses realized they had overhired and needed to make significant cuts, including Meta. That was the first wave of layoffs.

"In terms of the layoffs and stuff like that, I actually think that was more due to companies trying to navigate Covid," Zuckerberg said when asked if tech layoffs had to do with the AI boom.

What He Said About Meta's Layoffs

"It was obviously really tough, we parted with a lot of talented people we cared about," Zuckerberg said in the interview, speaking specifically about Meta's past layoffs. "But in some ways actually becoming leaner kind of makes the company more effective."

Following Zuckerberg's "year of efficiency," when Meta laid off tens of thousands of employees, the company has been steadily recovering.

As per Zuckerberg, businesses are still considering efficiency in their operations today. Many are thinking about changing the company's structure, reducing the number of management positions, and adopting a leaner business model.

More Than 30,000 Layoffs Have Happened In 2024

From Google, Amazon, to Microsoft, a lot of big companies have already announced the beginning of layoffs in 2024. Here's a list of companies that have laid off employees till date this year:

Instacart
Mozilla
Grammarly
Getaround
Amazon
DocuSign
Snap
Polygon Labs
Okta
Thinx
Proofpoint
Wattpad
Block
PayPal
Salesforce
Flexport
Microsoft
Swiggy
Aurora
eBay
SAP
Brex
TikTok
Vroom
Wayfair
YouTube
Pixar
Audible
Discord
Google
Amazon
Twitch
Treasure Financial
Duolingo
Rent the Runway
Unity
Pitch
BenchSci
Flexe
NuScale
Trigo
InVision
VideoAmp
Orca Security
Frontdesk