Business Big Tech Layoffs Megathread - Techbros... we got too cocky...

Since my previous thread kinda-sorta turned into a soft megathread, and the tech layoffs will continue until morale improves, I think it's better to group them all together.

For those who want a QRD:

Just this week we've had these going on:

https://www.theverge.com/24048636/ebay-layoffs-1000-employees-january-2024

https://arstechnica.com/google/2024/01/google-ceo-sundar-pichai-promises-another-year-of-google-layoffs/

https://edition.cnn.com/2024/01/24/tech/sap-restructuring-ai-jobs-intl-hnk/index.html

But it's not just Big Tech, the vidya industry is also cleaning house bigly:

https://www.brokentoys.org/ludum-mortuus-est/

All in all, rough seas ahead for the techbros.

 

[Kuritan Deplorable]

So that’s why the pajeets are going into AI development.

Trying and failing, yea. I've seen a dozen pajeet branches that just fundamentally break KoboldAI and Stable Diffusion via complete technological ignorance. Even the pajeets being hired en mass to help tag training data can't hack it, they're moving more of that work to other developing countries. And that'll probably accelerate in the coming year after the whole Amazon "AI" Fiasco where it was pajeets just constantly fucking up basic tracking tasks.

Pajeets will be able to develop AI when more of them become Intelligent themselves, rather than emulating it. They've got this tiny sliver of genius people, and then like 99.99% of the rest are clinically retarded, there's no middle ground.

 

[Chiang Kai-shek]

Trying and failing, yea. I've seen a dozen pajeet branches that just fundamentally break KoboldAI and Stable Diffusion via complete technological ignorance. Even the pajeets being hired en mass to help tag training data can't hack it, they're moving more of that work to other developing countries. And that'll probably accelerate in the coming year after the whole Amazon "AI" Fiasco where it was pajeets just constantly fucking up basic tracking tasks.

Pajeets will be able to develop AI when more of them become Intelligent themselves, rather than emulating it. They've got this tiny sliver of genius people, and then like 99.99% of the rest are clinically retarded, there's no middle ground.

They’ll just move to the C-suite positions. Mark my words, pajeets will never let a machine beat them.

 

[Kuritan Deplorable]

They’ll just move to the C-suite positions. Mark my words, pajeets will never let a machine beat them.

Maybe that fraction that actually has two braincells to rub together, but the rank and file $4/hour offshore call center ones are gonna get burned down, and they're the problem we need to get rid of anyway. Total Streetshitter Death is a nice dream, but I'll gladly take Total Retard Death instead and just lump the worst of the pajeets under that pile.

 

[Kiwi Lime Pie]

All projects I have been part of, from very large to very small, all have an unwritten "don't be an asshole" rule. And if you are an asshole people will stop interacting with you,

This seems to be true for those few groups that still remain of reasonable adults who haven't been permeated by social justice or identity politics. Word spreads through the grapevine past when a person or group violates the "Don't be an asshole" rule, and they end up being avoided by everyone else.

Only times I have seen CoC "enforcement" is not to correct behavior but to punish people. CoC's are all about being a weapon to punish people with wrongthink and the adoption of a weaponized coc can often make the project more toxic.

Anything beyond the above-mentioned "Don't be an asshole rule," and perhaps "use this software responsibly" is needless. Any CoC that has been altered to include SJW talking points and buzzwords is a a red flag that users of that particular software are subject to thought policing. A shame that from what I read here this is becoming more frequent instead of less.

The entire tour was about how they had the best campus, all the work benefits, and the 5 star chefs in the cafeteria(tbh was like the best food I ever had) but nothing useful at all. I'm surprised these companies haven't started struggling sooner.

I think this is part of a larger trend where administration/executive staff want to be seen as peers or buddies more than supervisors. They give new and prospective employees the things they believe the latter want to see in a fun workplace and let the employees do what they want without any sort of structure or discipline. It might work with the right people or in the short-term, but it's not sustainable long-term if the company depends on any sort of finished product. As @Google.com has stated, it's taken a bit longer than expected for the house of cards to start toppling, but it finally has and everyone losing their jobs seems Pikachu faced that allowing employees to do almost anything they want on company time except work eventually leads to job cuts or companies going belly up.

 

[Back me up!]

@Kiwi Lime Pie Sooo I actually think all that fun stuff at the office started off as just a secret way to keep everyone at the office instead of going home. Hang out at the office, dick around, have a beer, some one comes up with a idea, and then every one goes off and works on it. Sadly this model only really works for austic/nerdly white men/asians that love solving problems. You can have all that stuff with this crew:

Why go back to your San Fran shitbox when all the great stuff is at the office? And if the company gets some extra work out of a bunch of problem focus people that enjoy the work well all the better.

 

[moocow]

Sooo I actually think all that fun stuff at the office started off as just a secret way to keep everyone at the office instead of going home.

It's 100% this. Giant companies with a "campus" rather than just an office building (think Google) go even further by doing everything they can to keep employees either at the office, on campus for "life stuff" (like day care, gyms, recreation, even dining), or dependent on company services (like the free Google Shuttle some employees can take to/from work).

It's a concerted effort to fuck up the work/life balance of their employees. Those gyms, for instance, are free (for employees), very well equipped, staffed and maintained, and open extended hours. You can just swing by before or after work, no problem. There's no filthy outsiders around, either. Same with the daycare facilities. Free, extended hours, well staffed and equipped, easy access. Why waste time driving off campus for exercise or child care? Just come to us and take care of lots of your life stuff! No need for detours!

And of course, since we're giving you all these extras for free and saving you a lot of time and trouble, you wouldn't mind staying an hour later tonight to finish this [thing], would you? The daycare's open late, it's no big deal, right?

The more they can get employees to depend on corporate "luxuries," the less likely they are to form new (or maintain existing) relationships with non-employees, venture out in the world at large to indulge in hobbies or seek entertainment, or (eventually) deliberately avoid activities that don't involve the company, coworkers or company-provided perks.

It's ghoulish. There's a reason people call some of those corporate work environments "cultish."

Of course, places like IBM do the opposite and run their campuses like fucking prisons -- brutalist buildings surrounded by imposing barbed wire exterior fences only accessible through IBM-manufactured turnstiles secured by IBM-manufactured card readers that read IBM-manufactured employee badges. No frills, no extras. Only begrudgingly do they offer a cafeteria, and that shit ain't free either. Fun fact: last time I set foot in one, they were still running token ring instead of ethernet and had no plans to phase it out

 

[DavidS877]

It's 100% this. Giant companies with a "campus" rather than just an office building (think Google) go even further by doing everything they can to keep employees either at the office, on campus for "life stuff" (like day care, gyms, recreation, even dining), or dependent on company services (like the free Google Shuttle some employees can take to/from work).

You don't need the shuttle if you just live at the office.

This was 2020, so I'm not sure what the status is now, but they have the land to do it.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jackkelly/2020/09/04/google-has-master-plan-to-build-a-massive-corporate-town-for-its-employees/?sh=38fb89aa2d78

https://archive.ph/WQLje

https://realestate.withgoogle.com/middlefieldpark/

https://archive.ph/wjfGO

 

[Kuritan Deplorable]

You don't need the shuttle if you just live at the office.
View attachment 5925108
This was 2020, so I'm not sure what the status is now, but they have the land to do it.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jackkelly/2020/09/04/google-has-master-plan-to-build-a-massive-corporate-town-for-its-employees/?sh=38fb89aa2d78

https://archive.ph/WQLje

https://realestate.withgoogle.com/middlefieldpark/

https://archive.ph/wjfGO

And the thing is, while its draconian for 99% of people, the nearly live in the office lifestyle is literally a dream for an extremely specific kind of autist. The giganerds in the google AI labs probably consider it a blessing that they don't have to leave the office, because being at home is boring to them compared to making AI sexbots or whatever shit they're getting up to between routine patches for Bard. For those people, the works not about the money, or the balance, but that the thing they're incredibly passionate about also happens to be so valuable to their boss that they'll hire a dedicated everything for him to just be able to spend 20 hours a day in the office.

And you take that guy and offer him a 'house' he doesn't have to clean, in a corporate neighborhood with all the services dealt with by other people, so the few times he has to actually go home to sleep he can just throw his clothes into the corporate laundry and crash at 10pm, wake up eat a bagel from the corporate fridge in a kitchen cleaned by the corporate services department, hop onto a corporate shuttlebus at 4:30am because he woke up with an autistic revelation he has to explore right this second? He very well might offer to pay you for the fucking privilege at this point.

Still dystopian as fuck to watch from the sidelines because if it works, dumbasses will force it onto normal people who have lives outside of their career.

 

[kcbbq]

You don't need the shuttle if you just live at the office.
View attachment 5925108
This was 2020, so I'm not sure what the status is now, but they have the land to do it.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jackkelly/2020/09/04/google-has-master-plan-to-build-a-massive-corporate-town-for-its-employees/?sh=38fb89aa2d78

https://archive.ph/WQLje

https://realestate.withgoogle.com/middlefieldpark/

https://archive.ph/wjfGO

And for convenience they'll have their own currency that is the only thing the company store accepts and Merle Travis has to come back from the grave to update Sixteen Tons.

 

[FlappyBat]

It's 100% this. Giant companies with a "campus" rather than just an office building (think Google) go even further by doing everything they can to keep employees either at the office, on campus for "life stuff" (like day care, gyms, recreation, even dining), or dependent on company services (like the free Google Shuttle some employees can take to/from work).

The other reason is how our tax laws work. Let's say they have $10k per employee to spend. If they use that for extra salary it's taxed at a pretty hefty amount. If they use it for perks around the office, they claim it as a business expense and it's tax free.

Most people like having free coffee, a gym, and a cafeteria and will accept some amount of lower salary to get those things. If the money goes nearly 40% further spending on that stuff, the trade-off can make sense.

 

[TheRedChair]

The other reason is how our tax laws work. Let's say they have $10k per employee to spend. If they use that for extra salary it's taxed at a pretty hefty amount. If they use it for perks around the office, they claim it as a business expense and it's tax free.

Most people like having free coffee, a gym, and a cafeteria and will accept some amount of lower salary to get those things. If the money goes nearly 40% further spending on that stuff, the trade-off can make sense.

That's true. However this type of BULLSHIT has turn many of corporations into BABY SITTING FACTORIES FOR THE ENTITLED PROGRESSIVES WORKING IN THERE.

One of the reasons why nothing gets done anymore. Why do you think Layoffs are still happening in the Tech Industry?

As proven as an example of Musk firing 80% of Twitter's staff and Gee It's still there.

Seen this first hand during the AGE OF FREE MONEY as well as during the Coof.

Got fucking rich because assholes did not want to work and I did those menial tasks that were "beneath them".

 

[Ahriman]

https://www.eurogamer.net/ex-lionhead-devs-announce-new-game-shelve-new-game-and-confirm-layoffs-all-at-the-same-time

Oof

 

[sadrefrigerator]

And of course, since we're giving you all these extras for free and saving you a lot of time and trouble, you wouldn't mind staying an hour later tonight to finish this [thing], would you? The daycare's open late, it's no big deal, right?

The more they can get employees to depend on corporate "luxuries," the less likely they are to form new (or maintain existing) relationships with non-employees, venture out in the world at large to indulge in hobbies or seek entertainment, or (eventually) deliberately avoid activities that don't involve the company, coworkers or company-provided perks.

It's ghoulish. There's a reason people call some of those corporate work environments "cultish."

The funny thing is that people with families and lives outside of work usually fucked off after normal hours anyways. (This is why facebook tried to pay for getting eggs frozen). That being said, a lot of the benefits were pretty helpful. Having a free cafeteria serving quality food and not having to wait

The other reason is how our tax laws work. Let's say they have $10k per employee to spend. If they use that for extra salary it's taxed at a pretty hefty amount. If they use it for perks around the office, they claim it as a business expense and it's tax free.

Most people like having free coffee, a gym, and a cafeteria and will accept some amount of lower salary to get those things. If the money goes nearly 40% further spending on that stuff, the trade-off can make sense.

It was also a good deal for the employees since most of the office campuses inflated the value of nearby real estate by a significant margin. There would be no reasonable chain restaurants nearby. You'd have to get a copy of chipotle that was 3x the price but worse in quality.

 

[Ahriman]

https://www.texasmonthly.com/news-politics/austin-texas-tech-bust-oracle-tesla/

Silver lining, texasbros.

 

[quaawaa]

View attachment 5942296

View attachment 5942306

https://www.texasmonthly.com/news-politics/austin-texas-tech-bust-oracle-tesla/

Silver lining, texasbros.

That article is just whining from a wannabe Californian about the evil Republicans. The author completely ignored the massive layoffs done by Californian companies and the decline in VC investment in the Bay Area. Oracle, the company featured in the article, is “moving” to Tennessee, which is a redder state, so it’s not like they care about abortion or Prop 13.

 

[Ahriman]

https://www.hindustantimes.com/business/google-layoffs-sundar-pichai-led-company-fires-entire-python-team-for-cheaper-labour-101714379453603.html

https://social.coop/@Yhg1s/112332127058328855

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=40171125

The entire Python team.

 

[moocow]

View attachment 5947509

https://social.coop/@Yhg1s/112332127058328855

I love how these imbeciles have the fucking balls to bitch about capitalism as they retain (for now) their six-figure jobs. If only they knew how worthless they'd be in the eyes of communism or socialism and how fast they'd be sent to the factories (or the gulags).

 

[SIMIΔN]

They've got this tiny sliver of genius people, and then like 99.99% of the rest are clinically retarded, there's no middle ground.

I think there are plenty of smart Indians, but the current situation incentivises them to put their effort towards looking impressive instead of being impressive.

Anything beyond the above-mentioned "Don't be an asshole rule," and perhaps "use this software responsibly" is needless. Any CoC that has been altered to include SJW talking points and buzzwords is a a red flag that users of that particular software are subject to thought policing. A shame that from what I read here this is becoming more frequent instead of less.

Agreed, crybullies should care more about writing good code instead of tearing down others based on what they perceive as moral failings.

It was also a good deal for the employees since most of the office campuses inflated the value of nearby real estate by a significant margin. There would be no reasonable chain restaurants nearby. You'd have to get a copy of chipotle that was 3x the price but worse in quality.

The entire Python team.

At least they picked Germany and not India.
Silicon Valley landlords are killing the golden goose. The cost of living is insane there, even when compared to other developed countries.

Though I'm surprised Google didn't just relocate the team to somewhere cheaper in the USA. Institutional knowledge, team bonds and a proven track record are worth more than gold in an industry where small mistakes can have huge consequences.

 

[Grand Wizard Wakka]

Learn to coal mine, bugman parasites.

 

[indomitable snowman]

I'm seriously looking at going to night school for something like machining because I'm so fucking sick of pajeets. I'm so God damn sick of trying to understand their atrocious fucking accents over the phone. I'm fucking sick of them not being able to fix issues they absolutely should know how to fix. I can't even mask the contempt in my voice any longer and it's only going to get worse. They fucking ruined tech forever.

Also, in regards to those IBM layoffs: they're bullshit. They're just moving all of the jobs to India. During last spring's round, 7k postings went up on the IBM recruiting site shortly after the layoffs were announced. They axed the ENTIRE western IT departments and punted every single job to India.

That's basically Kyndryl, the IBM group that was spun-off into it's own company that is 99% pajeet for managed services, but are too retarded to know how to actually manage and maintain those systems and infrastructure. IBM has data centers that are entirely managed remotely by these indian guys after they fired literally every on-site person.