What just happened? We're used to seeing companies making layoffs as a direct result of generative AI adoption these days, but it seems those helping develop the technology are also at risk. Google has laid off more than 200 contractors in the last month without warning who were working on its AI products. According to reports, the cuts come amid ongoing disputes over pay and working conditions.
Google has been outsourcing its AI rating work for the last few years, writes Wired. Most of it goes to contractors employed by outsourcing companies such as the Hitachi-owned GlobalLogic. The majority of these contractors are based in the US, working with English-language content, and have a master's degree or PhD, which are required to join the super rater program.
Some of the laid-off workers, whose jobs included evaluating, editing, or rewriting the Gemini chatbot's responses, were told the cuts were due to a "ramp-down" on the project.
According to internal GlobalLogic documents seen by Wired, the company could be using its human raters to train an AI system that will automatically rate the responses. It's a case of humans training an AI that will eventually replace them – something we've seen before.
It's also suggested that GlobalLogic is another company practicing a form of quiet firing: in July, it demanded that its workers in Austin, Texas, return to the office. As some are unable to do so for health, financial, or commitment reasons, they have been forced to resign.
In what sounds unlikely to be a coincidence of timing, the cuts come amid worker protests over issues including low pay, poor working conditions, and job insecurity. It's alleged that these complaints have affected worker morale and impacted their ability to carry out their tasks well. Some contractors say there was also a quashed attempt to unionize earlier this year, and that the company is now retaliating using layoffs.
"These individuals are employees of GlobalLogic or their subcontractors, not Alphabet. As the employers, GlobalLogic and their subcontractors are responsible for the employment and working conditions of their employees," a Google spokesperson told Wired "We take our supplier relations seriously and audit the companies we work with against our Supplier Code of Conduct."
Those working in the AI industry have been feeling the pressure recently as companies that have invested millions or billions into the technology look to improve their returns. Elon Musk's xAI laid off 500 workers on Grok's annotation team last week. An email informed them that the firm plans to prioritize "specialist AI tutors" over generalist roles and will immediately eliminate most general tutoring positions.
Data labeling firm Scale AI, meanwhile, cut around 200 full-time staff and 500 contractors after Meta invested $14.8 billion in the firm earlier this year. This happened a month before Meta offered a top AI researcher $1.25 billion to work for the firm over four years – which he rejected.