A wymoDepartment alphabet – controller Google The autonomous car company announced last Wednesday (1st) that it had gone through two rounds of layoffs this year, reducing its team by about 8%. A total of 209 jobs were cut, according to the company, with cuts occurring at the end of January and a later round.

In a statement made to CNN, the company stated: “We have taken a thoughtful approach and are confident that we will provide for each of these former teammates during this transition. We are confident that we have the right teams to help Waymo succeed.“.

The layoffs, especially for engineering positions, are part of a broader organizational restructuring that follows a financially disciplined approach, a Waymo spokesperson said. In other words, the company cuts costs where possible while continuing to develop and implement its technologies.

Waymo is on track to commercialize autonomous vehicle technology, but it still has a long way to go and doesn’t generate much revenue to fund its operations.

In January of this year, Alphabet announced it was laying off 12,000 employees, 6% of its workforce, after adding more than 50,000 employees in the previous two years. Meanwhile, recent cuts at Waymo suggest that even Alphabet’s most ambitious and high-profile long-term initiatives are not immune to its updated cost containment strategy.

Tests in Los Angeles

That same week, Waymo announced its plans to begin trials of fully autonomous vehicles in Los Angeles, that is, without a safety operator behind the wheel. However, the news has been overshadowed by the company’s recent staff cuts.

Expanding the robotic taxi service to new cities is critical to Waymo’s commercialization strategy and therefore its potential ROI. However, there is still a long way to go as the company is still not generating enough revenue to cover its costs.

Mundo Conectado Deal Center: selection of discounts and lowest prices
Best deals on electronics, cell phones, TVs, soundbars, drones and more

Source: CNN

…..