Google expands voluntary buyout offers to employees in five countries amid rising AI costs: report

Google has expanded its voluntary employee buyout programme to five countries as the technology giant looks to rein in costs amid heavy investments in artificial intelligence (AI). The company began offering voluntary exit packages to some employees in Canada, France, Germany, Japan and Switzerland in June this year, according to an exclusive Reuters report published on November 4.

The move comes as Google’s parent company Alphabet continues to increase spending on AI infrastructure and capabilities, even as the growing cost of the technology raises concerns among investors. The company is also looking to shift resources towards business areas it considers strategic priorities, particularly AI and cloud computing.

A Google spokesperson confirmed the expansion of the programme to Reuters. “In 2025, some of our teams introduced a voluntary exit program with severance,” the spokesperson said. “This past summer, in June, we expanded this program globally in a few countries to support our important work ahead.” The number of employees who have accepted the latest round of buyout offers remains unclear. 

The latest expansion follows similar voluntary exit programmes introduced in select divisions in the US and the UK since last year. Company executives have positioned these programmes as an option for employees who no longer feel aligned with Google’s pace of work or its direction.

Google Cloud and DeepMind employees excluded from previous buyouts

The buyout programme appears to be following Google’s strategy of protecting teams working in areas identified as key growth priorities. Chief Financial Officer Anat Ashkenazi has repeatedly identified AI and cloud computing as important hiring priorities during the company’s quarterly earnings presentations.

Employees in Google Cloud and its AI research unit DeepMind were excluded from previous buyout offers. The latest expansion appears to follow the same pattern, the report said. In Switzerland, where Google employs around 5,000 people and operates a major engineering hub in Zurich, the programme covered multiple divisions but excluded DeepMind, according to three people familiar with the matter.

Employees who accepted the voluntary exit packages began leaving in August. Google announced the packages in mid-June and gave employees until mid-July to respond. Those who accepted received one month’s salary for every year of service, subject to a maximum of 12 months’ salary. One person familiar with the matter told Reuters that at least four employees in a team of around 50 had accepted the offer.

The latest round of buyouts also comes against the backdrop of workforce restructuring across the technology industry. Microsoft last week offered voluntary buyouts to around 60,000 employees as it seeks to contain costs.

Google’s latest move follows its earlier workforce adjustments in the US and the UK. In at least one instance, the company followed voluntary exit offers to a division with a round of layoffs. The company has also previously undertaken job cuts in Switzerland, where it laid off more than 200 employees in 2023, triggering protests and a staff walkout.