'Working Here Is Joyless & Demoralising': Microsoft Employees' Open Letter Accuses Company Of Putting AI Ahead Of People
A group of current and former Microsoft employees is circulating an open letter that accuses the company of pursuing artificial intelligence at the expense of its workers, customers and climate commitments. The letter has gained fresh attention after Microsoft offered voluntary buyouts to about 60,000 staff, more than 25 percent of its workforce. The company says it is the first offer of its…
A coalition of Microsoft employees has penned an open letter decrying the company's alleged prioritization of artificial intelligence over employee welfare, customers, and climate commitments. The letter gained prominence following Microsoft's announcement of voluntary buyouts for approximately 60,000 staff members, representing more than a quarter of its global workforce. The company describes this as the first of its kind.
In the letter, workers describe a disheartened and demoralized work environment, attributing the decline in morale to Microsoft's intensified focus on AI investments. They cite factors such as excessive workloads, frequent reorganizations, and the potential of being substituted by AI technology. The signatories also highlight the pressure to incorporate AI tools into their tasks, often lacking adequate training and justification beyond the promise of increased efficiency.
They describe a vicious cycle of acquiring new tools, fixing subpar AI outputs, and discarding ineffective features.
Beyond the workplace, the signatories criticize Microsoft's internal research indicating that AI agents do not prioritize user safety, and internal planning documents propose strategies to entice employees to become dependent on AI products. They object to the company's secretive data center initiatives, contracts with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Israeli military, and what they term as circular investments among a limited number of AI firms.
The letter's demands are structured around three pillars: no AI without worker input and safeguards, no AI without community protections, and no trade-offs on environmental commitments for AI development. Regarding climate change, the group urges Microsoft to reaffirm its commitment to being carbon negative, water positive, and waste-free by 2030.
They also request that the company involve employees in decisions regarding AI development and usage, and refrain from linking AI utilization to performance evaluations or penalties. The membership is open to full-time staff, subsidiaries like GitHub and LinkedIn, vendors, interns, and contractors.
The voluntary exit offer extends to eligible employees at level 70 and below in specific teams located in India, the US, the UK, and Canada. Employees who accept receive at least eight weeks of base pay, with the amount increasing based on their level and tenure. They have until December 9 to make a decision, following which they would leave by December 31.
Microsoft anticipates that fewer than 5% of eligible employees will accept the offer. This is the second buyout program of 2026 for the company; in April, about 8,600 long-tenured US employees were offered early retirement, with roughly 30% accepting. In July, Microsoft also laid off around 4,800 individuals, including a fifth of its Xbox workforce.
This follows 10,000 layoffs in 2023 and over 15,000 in 2025. The company's headcount stood at 223,000 in June, down by 5,000 from the previous year.
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