Business1 min read

Microsoft posts $33.6bn profit after offering buyouts to one in four workers

By · Published by Everything Blog

In short

Microsoft generated $92.3 billion in quarterly revenue as robust demand for its cloud services bolstered its bottom line. To fund substantial expansions in artificial intelligence, the company plans to reduce its overall workforce by more than a quarter through voluntary buyouts. Following the earnings release, the company's shares climbed nearly 2.9% during after-hours trading in New York. Chairman Satya Nadella emphasized that the company remains dedicated to driving cost efficiency while expanding its intelligent agent safety and security capabilities.

Key points

  • Expanding cloud computing operations continues to serve as the primary growth driver behi…: Expanding cloud computing operations continues to serve as the primary growth driver behind the company's strong corporate earnings.
  • Management is actively reducing staff overhead to redirect billions of dollars toward hig…: Management is actively reducing staff overhead to redirect billions of dollars toward high-priority artificial intelligence infrastructure projects.
  • Technology firms face persistent investor scrutiny regarding whether aggressive capital e…: Technology firms face persistent investor scrutiny regarding whether aggressive capital expenditures on artificial intelligence will yield sustainable long-term profits.

Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1

- Published

Technology giant Microsoft says its profits for the three months to the end of September jumped to more than $36.6bn (£27.5bn), just days after announcing plans to cut its workforce by more than a quarter.

On Monday, the Windows developer said it would offer voluntary buyouts to around 60,000 of its workers to cut costs as it pours billions of dollars into artificial intelligence (AI).

Like other tech firms, Microsoft is investing heavily in the infrastructure that powers AI even as questions remain over whether such huge spending will pay off.

Microsoft shares rose by almost 2.9% in after hours trading in New York on Wednesday.

The recent financial results of tech companies have been closely watched by investers as they gauge whether the heavy spending on AI is sustainable.

Microsoft said on Wednesday that its quarterly revenue rose to $92.3bn, driven by strong growth in its cloud computing business.

The firm's chairman and chief executive Satya Nadella said in a statement: "We are delivering greater capability, choice, control, and cost efficiency for customers across our entire stack."

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