Alphabet has expanded its voluntary employee buyout program to five more countries as the Google parent seeks to control operating costs while pouring billions of dollars into artificial intelligence infrastructure.
The company confirmed to Reuters on Wednesday that it extended voluntary exit offers to employees in five countries in June.
The number of employees who accepted the offers remains unclear.
Alphabet shares gained approximately 1% in premarket trading Wednesday as investors assessed the company’s efforts to redirect resources toward its AI ambitions.
Alphabet’s shares came under pressure after its third-quarter results, losing over 12.5% in a single session due to worries around its massive spending.
Google expands voluntary buyout program
The latest round builds on a voluntary exit program Google introduced across some teams in 2025.
The company subsequently extended the offers to selected employees in the US and the UK before expanding the initiative internationally this year.
Employees in Canada, France, Germany, Japan and Switzerland are at the receiving end this time, as per the report.
“In 2025, some of our teams introduced a voluntary exit program with severance,” a Google spokesperson told Reuters. “This past summer, in June, we expanded this program globally in a few countries to support our important work ahead.”
Executives have reportedly described the offers as an opportunity for employees who no longer feel aligned with the company’s direction to leave voluntarily.
In Switzerland, where Google employs approximately 5,000 people, employees were informed about the packages in mid-June and given until mid-July to respond.
Departures began in August. Employees who accepted received one month’s salary for every year of service, subject to a maximum payout of 12 months.
The program covered several divisions but excluded DeepMind, Google’s artificial intelligence research unit. Google Cloud employees and DeepMind staff were also excluded from earlier buyout rounds.
The latest move comes even as Alphabet’s overall workforce has continued to expand in recent quarters.
Big Tech cuts jobs to fund AI ambitions
Google’s move reflects a broader trend across the technology industry, where companies are reassessing workforce costs while increasing investments in computing infrastructure.
Microsoft last week introduced a voluntary exit program for approximately 60,000 employees, representing over one-fourth of its global workforce.
Meta announced plans in April to reduce its workforce by approximately 8,000 employees, or 10%, while Amazon has undertaken multiple rounds of job cuts across its business.
Oracle also eliminated approximately 21,000 positions in June as it redirected resources toward AI infrastructure.
Alphabet’s AI spending adds to pressure
The buyout expansion comes as Alphabet faces growing investor scrutiny over the financial demands of its AI investments.
The company spent $51.4 billion on capital expenditures in the third quarter, more than double the amount recorded a year earlier.
Its free cash flow turned negative at $9.1 billion, compared with positive cash generation in the year-earlier period.
The cash outflow reflected heavy infrastructure investment, inventory buildup for its TPU systems and a European Commission-related payment.
The post Google expands employee buyouts to five more countries as AI spending soars: report appeared first on Invezz
