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Microsoft saves $500 million with AI amid job cuts, Bloomberg reports

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Microsoft (MSFT.O) saved over $500 million last year in its call centers alone by leveraging artificial intelligence, Bloomberg News reported Wednesday. This comes as the tech giant announced plans to cut nearly 4% of its workforce to control costs amid heavy investments in AI infrastructure. In May, Microsoft disclosed layoffs affecting around 6,000 employees.

AI tools have boosted productivity across various departments, including sales, customer service, and software engineering. According to Microsoft’s Chief Commercial Officer Judson Althoff, AI is now managing interactions with smaller customers, a nascent effort already generating tens of millions of dollars in savings, Bloomberg reported citing an insider.

Althoff also revealed that AI contributed to 35% of the code for new products, speeding up launch times. Microsoft declined to comment on the report when contacted by Reuters.

This fiscal year, Microsoft has allocated $80 billion in capital spending, primarily to expand data centers to address capacity constraints for AI services. As big tech companies ramp up AI investments, they are simultaneously cutting costs in other areas to maintain profitability.

Microsoft to Cut Around 4% of Workforce Amid Heavy AI Investment Costs

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Microsoft announced it will lay off nearly 4% of its global workforce as part of efforts to control costs while investing heavily in artificial intelligence infrastructure. The company, with about 228,000 employees as of June 2024, had already begun layoffs in May affecting around 6,000 workers, primarily in sales roles.

The tech giant has pledged $80 billion in capital spending for fiscal year 2025, but the soaring costs of expanding AI capabilities have pressured profit margins. Microsoft’s cloud margin for the June quarter is expected to decline compared to the previous year.

In addition to workforce reductions, Microsoft plans to simplify its organizational structure by reducing management layers and streamlining products, processes, and roles. The gaming division, including its Barcelona-based King unit known for Candy Crush, will also see job cuts of about 10%, or roughly 200 employees.

Microsoft’s layoffs follow a broader trend among Big Tech companies investing in AI, with peers like Meta trimming about 5% of its lowest performers, Alphabet cutting hundreds of jobs, and Amazon reducing staff across various segments amid economic uncertainties and rising operational costs.

TP Plans to Return 1.5 Billion Euros to Shareholders by 2028 Amid AI-Driven Transformation

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French call centre and office services company TP (formerly Teleperformance) announced on Wednesday new medium-term financial targets, including plans to return 1.5 billion euros to shareholders by 2028 through dividends and share buybacks.

TP, which offers decentralized customer service and moderation solutions, is leveraging AI-powered tools to enhance its offerings and address the potential automation impact on traditional outsourcing services. The company forecasted that up to one-third of its activities could be automated within the next three years.

Finance Chief Olivier Rigaudy said the firm aims for like-for-like sales growth between 4% and 6% (at constant exchange rates) by 2028 and targets a recurring EBITDA margin of 15.5% the same year. Over the 2026-2028 period, TP plans to generate 3 billion euros in free cash flow, allocating about 20% (600 million euros) for acquisitions.

On the innovation front, TP unveiled TP.ai FAB, a proprietary AI orchestration platform designed to integrate artificial intelligence with human expertise and automation. This initiative is supported by its acquisition of Agents Only, an AI-enabled crowdsourcing platform.

The company employs over 410,000 people globally and recently announced a cost-cutting plan involving 600 job cuts to manage debt that nearly doubled in 2023 after consolidating Majorel. Earlier projections for 2025 include 3%-5% like-for-like sales growth and a slight EBITDA margin increase.