Microsoft is giving a large chunk of its workforce a new option: leave now, with support.
The company confirmed to TechCrunch on Monday that it is offering buyouts to around 60,000 employees. In a note published on Microsoft’s official blog, Chief People Officer Amy Coleman introduced what the company calls a Voluntary Exit Offer, or VEO.
Who is eligible
The offer is open to eligible employees in participating teams in Canada, India, the United Kingdom and the United States at level 70 and below. Not every part of the company is taking part. Coleman wrote that participation varies based on each business’s priorities, customer commitments and workforce needs.
According to Bloomberg, as cited by TechCrunch, divisions including Xbox, Windows, Copilot and Finance are participating. Some employees, including those working in data centres, sales and marketing, are excluded.
Eligible staff were due to receive an email with details within hours of the announcement. TechCrunch reports the terms will be similar to Microsoft’s standard severance. The programme is time-limited and offers financial support and career planning resources.
Why now
TechCrunch describes the move as Microsoft’s latest effort to cut costs and rework its workforce for the AI age. It gives the company a way to shrink headcount without the disruption of mass layoffs.
It isn’t Microsoft’s first buyout this year. Earlier in 2026 it offered buyouts to retirement-age employees, and more than 30% of the roughly 8,750 eligible workers accepted. Microsoft’s headcount stood at 223,000 at the end of June, which puts this new offer at roughly a quarter of the workforce.
“The Voluntary Exit Offer is new for us. We’ll learn from it,” Coleman wrote, adding that there is “no one-size-fits-all approach for every team or every employee.”
Why it matters
India is one of the four countries included, so this directly affects many tech professionals here. More broadly, it’s another sign of how AI investment is reshaping big tech budgets: companies are spending heavily on data centres and models while looking for savings elsewhere. For businesses, it may also mean more experienced Microsoft-ecosystem talent entering the market for consulting and project work.
Sources: Microsoft, TechCrunch. Written by the xRapid Media LLP team.