The apocalypse of the tech industry is not over yet with the workforce reduction process that started in 2022 languishing into 2024. Yesterday Google has laid off more than 1000 workers in the process of reorganizing their device and services division. Among the victims are Fitbit founders James Park and Eric Friedman.
Hundreds of positions have been eliminated in the Pixel, Nest and Fitbit hardware divisions. This is Google's effort to combine their hardware design team under one umbrella while reducing duplication of work within the organization. Also affected is the augmented reality (AR) department with the majority of staff being fired. Google released a statement saying they are still committed to AR development at this time.
Previously Google, Samsung and Qualcomm announced that they would develop AR headsets which were then delayed shortly after the Apple Vision Pro was announced. Looking at current developments such as replacing Nearby Share with Quick Share and partnering with Samsung for Wear OS, this may be a sign that Google is more comfortable working together and no longer developing features independently.
The future of Fitbit also looks dark with sales of this health tracker pulled from several markets including Malaysia. After being taken over by Google, it was seen that Fitbit was only interested in technology without trying to pursue product sales more seriously.