TechTimes: U.S. tech layoffs 113,000

TechTimes reported on May 18 that U.S. tech layoffs had surpassed 113,000 so far in 2026, citing Layoffs.fyi data and a wave of cuts by companies that have linked restructuring to artificial intelligence. The figure works out to about 825 job losses a day, according to the report. The tally adds to evidence that the industry’s layoffs are no longer confined to startups or one-off cost reductions. In California, the losses are feeding a tougher job market for engineers, recruiters, product managers and operations staff, according to separate reporting by the Los Angeles Times. ### Where does the 113,000 figure come from? Layoffs.fyi, a tracker created by Roger Lee, says it is compiling tech and startup layoffs on a live basis. TechTimes said the 113,000 figure covered 179 companies as of May 18. A separate search snippet summarizing the same tracker also described the total as more than 113,000 layoffs by that date, reinforcing the count cited by TechTimes. (techtimes.com) The number is a running tally, not a federal labor-market series. That matters because it reflects announced or reported company cuts aggregated across the sector, rather than a government census of all technology employment losses. TechTimes also said there is no federal law requiring companies to disclose when AI directly drives layoffs, making attribution uneven from company to company. (layoffs.fyi) ### Why are companies tying layoffs to AI? Tech companies including Meta and others have framed some cuts around efficiency, automation and heavier spending on AI infrastructure, according to TechTimes and other recent coverage. CBS News reported last week that more employers are now explicitly highlighting AI adoption when announcing layoffs. Challenger, Gray & Christmas said in 2025 that companies had directly attributed 55,000 job cuts to AI that year, a figure CBS cited in its report. (techtimes.com) TechTimes also pointed to a disclosure gap: employers can cite reorganization, efficiency or cost controls without specifying whether AI tools replaced tasks or whether capital was shifted from labor to computing. That leaves outside trackers, labor researchers and state filings to reconstruct the pattern after the fact. (techtimes.com) ### Why is California showing up so prominently in this story? The Los Angeles Times reported on May 19 that California tech workers were facing a worsening market as companies including Meta and Coinbase continued layoffs while citing AI-driven changes to work. The report described displaced workers in Silicon Valley and beyond confronting longer searches and reconsidering career paths. (techtimes.com) A mirrored version of the article carried the same account of a “brutal” market for jobless tech workers. California also gets more visibility because mass layoffs often surface through WARN notices and local reporting before they are fully reflected in broader labor data. Public WARN trackers show California filings being updated continuously, though those records do not capture every tech reduction and can lag company announcements. (msn.com) ### Which companies are shaping the latest count? TechTimes said Meta was due to carry out 8,000 cuts on May 20 in what it called the year’s most-watched single layoff event. The report said sources told Reuters the reductions could eventually reach 20% of Meta’s global workforce. Earlier in 2026, SFGATE reported that a separate Meta layoff affecting at least 272 workers in the Bay Area and Los Angeles had been confirmed by a company spokesperson. (warntracker.com) Other trackers and recent reports have also pointed to cuts at Microsoft, Oracle, Amazon, Coinbase and Snap as part of the 2026 total, though the exact aggregate varies by methodology and update time. Yahoo said on May 19 that tech layoffs in 2026 were approaching 139,000 across its own running list, underscoring that different trackers can diverge even while describing the same broad trend. (techtimes.com) ### What comes next for the count? May 20 is the next concrete date in the story because TechTimes said Meta would begin processing 8,000 cuts that day. Layoffs.fyi says its tracker is updated continuously, and California WARN databases are also refreshed as new notices arrive. Those two sources are likely to be the next places where the 2026 total moves in public view. (techtimes.com) (yahoo.com)