Google layoffs hit Android, Pixel, Chrome teams following voluntary exit program: Report

Google has laid off hundreds of employees from its Platforms and Devices unit — the team responsible for Android software, Pixel smartphones, and the Chrome web browser, the news website The Information reported on Friday, citing a person with direct knowledge of the matter.

The layoffs follow a “voluntary exit program” introduced in January by Rick Osterloh, Google’s Senior Vice President of Platforms and Devices and former president of Motorola Mobility. The program offered severance packages to U.S.-based employees who opted to leave.

“Since combining the Platforms and Devices teams last year, we’ve focused on becoming nimbler and operating more effectively and this included making some job reductions in addition to the voluntary exit program that we offered in January,” a Google spokesperson said in a statement, as quoted in the report, adding that Google continues to hire in the U.S. and globally.

Just a year ago, Google merged its Android, Pixel hardware, and Chrome browser teams into a single unit named “Platforms and Devices,” under Osterloh’s leadership. Before the voluntary exits, the unit employed approximately 20,000 people, the report said.

Osterloh had previously stated that the merger aimed to enable deeper integration of artificial intelligence across Google's hardware and software products.

In its annual report, Google-parent Alphabet noted a $2.2 billion (approximately ₹18,370 crore) reduction in general and administrative expenses, primarily due to a decrease in average headcount. This resulted in savings of $285 million (approximately ₹2,380 crore) in employee compensation.

As of December 31, 2024, Alphabet employed 183,323 people. The company has maintained a headcount of around 180,000 since cutting 6% of its workforce in 2023.