240,000 Jobs Gone: Will the Big Tech Layoff Wave Hit South Korea Too?

Global big tech companies are continuing restructuring efforts to expand their artificial intelligence (AI) investments. As technology firms speed up workforce optimization, including Microsoft (MS)'s decision to cut 4,800 jobs, the employment landscape is changing rapidly in the AI era. In South Korea, analysts say AI-driven job insecurity is growing as new hiring is being reduced.
■ Microsoft cuts 4,800 jobs, Oracle trims more than 20,000
According to the IT industry on the 7th, MS said it will lay off 4,800 employees, or about 2.1% of its global workforce. In particular, the Xbox division, which handles the gaming business, has launched a major reorganization that will reduce its staff by 3,200, or about 20% of the unit's total workforce. Amy Coleman, MS chief human resources officer, explained that the move is intended to prioritize people, investment and energy so the company can deliver value to customers in a rapidly changing industry. The restructuring comes about three years after MS acquired Activision Blizzard in 2023, but the expected synergy with its existing Xbox business has fallen short of expectations.
Meanwhile, as AI competition intensifies, big tech companies are pouring huge sums into AI infrastructure such as data centers and graphics processing units (GPUs). At the same time, the spread of AI agents and generative AI across business operations is reducing demand for existing workers. Analysts say restructuring is continuing as companies try to balance two pressures: expanding AI investment and cutting costs. According to Layoffs.fyi, a website that tracks layoffs at technology companies, more than 124,000 people lost their jobs last year, and about 120,000 more have already been cut this year. That means more than 240,000 jobs have disappeared over the past 18 months.
Oracle Corporation is said to have cut 21,000 employees over the past 12 months, or about 13% of its total workforce. Meta Platforms laid off more than 8,000 workers in May and is focusing on generative AI development and expanding its superintelligence organization. Amazon also restructured its business earlier this year by laying off about 16,000 office workers and expanding AI automation.
■ Domestic big tech firms also move to improve workforce efficiency
South Korean IT companies cannot easily carry out mass layoffs like those in the United States, but the trend toward reducing new hiring and improving organizational efficiency around AI is becoming more visible. Major platform companies are cutting the scale of open recruitment for both entry-level and experienced hires, or shifting to rolling recruitment focused on AI talent. Naver skipped its first-half new graduate hiring this year, which it had conducted until last year, and has not yet set a schedule for its second-half recruitment. A Naver official said, "We are not reducing hiring on a large scale, but we are reviewing various measures to recruit talent suited to the AI era."
The gaming industry is also undergoing an AI-centered overhaul. To improve development efficiency, companies are actively introducing generative AI into game development, while cases of merging smaller, less profitable studios or shutting down projects are continuing. In addition, NCSoft and KRAFTON have each carried out organizational restructuring since 2024 and last year, respectively, while Nexon is also reducing new hiring and accelerating efforts to streamline its organization. As job insecurity rises at South Korean IT companies, labor relations are also being affected. The Kakao labor union, which is currently in conflict with management, has made employment stability a key issue, including the voluntary retirement program at its affiliate XL Games.
[email protected] Juwon Gyu Reporter