LinkedIn will cut 668 more jobs this year, bringing the total to nearly 1,400

LinkedIn announced a rollout of AI-powered tools across the company this month. It’s laying off 668 workers today, a future-focused announcement.

An informed source says 563 layoffs will be in R&D, affecting engineering, product, talent, and finance teams.

The cuts, announced this morning, come five months after LinkedIn cut 716 jobs and phased out its China app. Microsoft-owned LinkedIn has laid off 1,384 people as of today. Layoffs.fyi reported over 242,000 technology sector layoffs in 2023.

While adapting our organizational structures and streamlining our decision making, we are continuing to invest in strategic priorities for our future and to deliver value for our members and customers, the company said in an unsigned statement today. “We are committed to supporting all impacted employees during this transition and treating them with care and respect.”

The strategic priorities weren’t specified, but hiring more AI talent is likely one.

LinkedIn became less transparent about its finances and operations after Microsoft bought it for over $26 billion in 2016. In its July 2023 full-fiscal-year earnings report, Microsoft reported more than 950 million members and $15 billion in revenues, with Talent Solutions contributing $7 billion+.

AI continues to help our members and customers find opportunities and leverage platform experts. LinkedIn said its AI-powered collaborative articles were its fastest-growing traffic driver.