Google began offering selected employees voluntary exit packages in five countries in June 2026, but it has not said whether the program is related to Alphabet’s large AI infrastructure spending.
Google told Reuters the offers covered selected employees in Canada, France, Germany, Japan and Switzerland. The company did not disclose how many people received or accepted offers; Reuters said it could not determine the number of employees who took them.
A Google spokesperson said the expansion was intended “to support our important work ahead.” The statement did not set a savings target or link the offers to AI spending. The spokesperson also said certain teams had offered employees severance-linked voluntary departures in 2025.
Reuters reported that in Switzerland, employees were notified of decisions by mid-July and departures began in August. Citing three people familiar with the program, the outlet said accepted employees received one month’s salary for each year of service, capped at 12 months. One source said at least four people from a team of about 50 accepted. The reported terms do not establish what packages were offered in the other countries.
Alphabet reported $51.4 billion in capital expenditures for Q3 2026. On the Oct. 28 earnings call, Anat Ashkenazi, senior vice president and chief financial officer of Alphabet and Google, said technical infrastructure supporting the company’s AI investments accounted for the vast majority of that spending. On Oct. 28, Alphabet left its 2026 capital expenditure guidance unchanged at $195 billion to $205 billion and projected a significant increase in 2027.
Alphabet’s Q3 2026 Form 10-Q reported 204,757 employees as of Sept. 30, 2026. The filing put research and development expenses at $20.64 billion for the three months ended Sept. 30, up from $15.151 billion in the same period a year earlier. Employee compensation and depreciation were among the primary drivers of the increase.
Alphabet said it would provide more detail on its 2027 capital spending plans during its Q4 earnings call; the transcript did not give a date for the call.
