Google has offered some of its employees the option to voluntarily leave the company.
The tech giant has reportedly set up a “voluntary exit programme” for members of the Android and Pixel teams as well as employees involved in other projects.
Those who take up Google on the offer will be able to step away from their role at the company with a guaranteed severance package, according to a report by 9to5Google. The announcement was made in a memo written by Rick Osterloh, the SVP of platforms and devices at Google.
“This comes after we brought two large organizations together last year. […] There’s tremendous momentum on this team and with so much important work ahead, we want everyone to be deeply committed to our mission and focused on building great products, with speed and efficiency,” Osterloh wrote in the memo.
Google’s Android and other hardware teams were merged in April last year to help integrate AI features across the company’s products and services more quickly. The merged division has been led by Osterloh since then.
Voluntary buyouts can evolve into a round of layoffs if enough employees do not choose to leave. Other divisions such as Google Search and Deepmind are reportedly not covered under the voluntary exit programme.
Towards the end of 2024, Google CEO Sundar Pichai reportedly told employees to brace for a “critical year” ahead.
“I think it’s really important we internalize the urgency of this moment, and need to move faster as a company. The stakes are high. These are disruptive moments. In 2025, we need to be relentlessly focused on unlocking the benefits of this technology and solve real user problems,” Pichai had said at an internal strategy meeting held at the company’s headquarters in Mountain View, California, US.
The article originally appeared on The Indian Express.
