On Thursday, Rick Osterloh, Google’s Senior Vice President, circulated an internal memo to the teams working on Pixel, Android, and Chrome, announcing a new “voluntary exit program.” TechCrunch has verified the letter’s authenticity following its initial report by 9 to 5 Google.
In a statement provided to TechCrunch, a company spokesperson remarked:
The Platforms & Devices team is introducing a voluntary exit program that allows US-based Googlers within this team to choose to leave the company with a severance package. This decision follows the unification of two major organizations last year. We are experiencing significant momentum within this team, and with many critical projects ahead, we aim for everyone to be fully devoted to our mission and focused on creating exceptional products with both speed and efficiency.
This severance initiative comes less than a year after Google consolidated its Android, Pixel hardware, and Chrome teams into a single “Platform and Devices” division, which is overseen by Osterloh.
In April, Osterloh highlighted that the reorganization aimed to enhance the integration of the company’s AI capabilities across its products. Over the past months, Google’s generative AI platform, Gemini, has notably expanded within its hardware and software offerings.
Gemini gained significant attention earlier this month when Samsung introduced its flagship Galaxy S25 smartphone. The service has also been pivotal for Google’s hardware devices, taking the place of the Home Assistant in Pixel products. Meanwhile, Google Home continues to serve an important function within the company’s Nest smart home hardware lineup.
The exit program covers a broad spectrum of Google’s offerings, including Android, Chrome/ChromeOS, Fitbit, Google One, Nest, Photos, and Pixel. Meanwhile, other significant divisions such as AI and search remain unaffected by this change.
News of the memo comes on the heels of Amazon’s recent announcement regarding the layoffs of several employees in its communications and corporate responsibility departments on Wednesday.
Compiled by Techarena.au.
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