Key Takeaways
1. Microsoft laid off 4% of its employees, totaling around 9,000 individuals.
2. An Xbox Game Studios executive faced backlash for suggesting laid-off workers use AI tools for emotional support and job searching.
3. The advice included using AI as a “career coach” to help with job applications and overcoming impostor syndrome.
4. The gaming community criticized the advice as insensitive, especially given the context of layoffs linked to Microsoft’s AI investments.
5. The layoffs impacted at least 13 game studios and resulted in the cancellation of three games, significantly affecting the industry.
Microsoft has recently revealed that it has laid off 4% of its employees, which totals around 9,000 individuals. In the midst of this upheaval, an executive producer from Xbox Game Studios found himself facing backlash after sharing advice for those affected by the layoffs on LinkedIn, and understandably so.
Insensitive Advice
His suggestion to utilize AI tools like ChatGPT and Microsoft Copilot to cope with the emotional impact of job loss and prepare for future employment was not well-received by his former colleagues and others. Many viewed the advice as lacking sensitivity towards the situation.
In a post that has since been deleted from LinkedIn, but was shared on Bluesky by Brandon Sheffield, Matt Turnbull encouraged employees to leverage AI tools to “lessen the emotional and cognitive burden that comes with losing a job.” He added:
“These are tough times, and if you’re facing a layoff or even getting ready for one, you’re not on your own and you don’t have to face it alone.”
AI as a Career Coach
Turnbull proposed the idea of using AI as a “career coach” to assist in “forming a 30-day strategy to regroup, research new job opportunities, and start applying without feeling burnt out.” He went further to suggest using AI for tailoring resumes for various job openings, drafting new “About Me” sections, and contacting potential employers.
He implied that the ex-employees might be dealing with impostor syndrome and shared a prompt that ignited outrage within the gaming sector and among laid-off employees:
“I’m feeling impostor syndrome after being let go. Can you assist me in reframing this experience to remind me of my strengths?”
Backlash from the Community
This post faced fierce criticism from the gaming community and previous Microsoft employees. Eric Smith, a former producer at ZeniMax Online whose project was scrapped, responded bluntly, saying, “Read the room dude.”
Numerous individuals noted that Turnbull’s comments were tone-deaf, particularly in light of Microsoft’s aggressive investment in AI—speculated to be a contributing factor to the layoffs. The company is set to invest nearly $80 billion on AI infrastructure in 2025 alone.
The repercussions of these significant layoffs are ongoing, with at least 13 game studios being impacted, along with the cancellation of three games. Turn 10 Studios, for instance, saw 70 team members let go, which represents half of its staff. Meanwhile, ZeniMax Online’s recent MMORPG was canceled after almost seven years of development, coinciding with the departure of its studio founder, Matt Firor.
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