Key facts
- Amazon spent an estimated $2.7 billion in severance costs through 2025.
- Oracle and Intel each spent $1.8 billion on departing employees.
- Intel laid off about 15% of its workforce, over 25,000 jobs, in 2025.
- Oracle's headcount fell by 21,000 between May 2025 and May 2026.
- Dell reported $569 million in severance costs, with employee numbers falling by 36,000 over three years.
- Cisco disclosed $617 million in employee severance charges as part of a restructuring plan.
Several major US technology companies are incurring significant expenses related to workforce reductions, spending billions of dollars on severance packages. Business Insider's review of annual reports revealed that while some companies like Meta, Nvidia, Apple, and Alphabet did not disclose specific severance costs, others provided figures indicating substantial investments in employee departures.
Amazon, for instance, disclosed an estimated $2.7 billion in severance costs through 2025, with $1.8 billion recorded in the third quarter of the previous year. These cuts are part of CEO Andy Jassy's strategy to reshape the company following a pandemic-era hiring surge. The reported layoffs suggest a cost of approximately $60,000 per employee.
Outside the "Magnificent Seven" group, companies like Oracle and Intel reported the highest severance expenses, each spending $1.8 billion. Intel's layoffs, affecting over 25,000 employees or 15% of its workforce, are part of a turnaround effort. Oracle's headcount decreased by 21,000 as it reorients its business towards cloud and AI, with a spokesperson noting the need to balance resources for optimal product delivery.
Dell reported $569 million in severance costs as it adjusted after the pandemic PC boom, reducing its workforce by 36,000 over three years. Cisco disclosed $617 million in charges for restructuring and layoffs aimed at redirecting investment toward AI. Chipmakers AMD and Micron reported smaller severance costs, at $79 million and $30 million, respectively.