Microsoft also spent around $9.7 billion on stock buybacks and dividends ahead of the recent mass layoffs, but Nadella says the company is ‘thriving.’
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has made a statement on Microsoft’s recent mass layoffs and the road ahead for the company. In his statement, Satya Nadella begins by saying the employees laid off have been “weighing heavily” on him. Nonetheless, he also stated that Microsoft is “thriving” and the layoffs that brought the company to this point provide “a new opportunity to shape, lead through, and have greater impact than ever before,” as the company redoubles its efforts in AI technology and growth.
Nadella shared these sentiments in a statement posted on the Microsoft website this week. There, Nadella attempted to put on paper how much he cares about the estimated 9,000 employees caught in layoffs between studio closures, project cancellations, and discontinuation of longtime services:
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Satya Nadella immediately went on to say that Microsoft is thriving and these layoffs are part of its priorities of growth and restructure in an environment that demands it:
Satya Nadella was compensated almost $79.1 million by Microsoft in 2024 according to The Seattle Times. Moreover, in Q3 2025 alone, Microsoft paid out $9.7 billion in stock buybacks and investor dividends. While there are likely many factors in play as far as cost and budgeting go for the trillion dollar company, these particular figures continue to remain notable as it explains why laying off 9,000+ employees was necessary.
As we continue to follow the latest updates and news on these stories, stay tuned to the Microsoft topic for more coverage.
