[Last updated on March 19, 2025]
The R&D layoff trend shows no signs of slowing as we move through March, with significant cuts announced across pharmaceuticals, automotive, tech hardware, and AI startups. March has been especially challenging for European automakers, with Porsche AG announcing one of the largest cuts so far this year (3,900 workers). On March 12, the luxury car manufacturer and VW subsidiary unveiled plans to eliminate approximately 3,900 jobs as part of a multi-year efficiency push. The firm has already trimmed about 1,900 positions through early retirements and voluntary departures. Another 2,000 roles are set to be eliminated as fixed-term contracts expire. These cuts come as Porsche’s operating profit tumbled roughly 23% in 2024. A “challenging market” remains in the words of the company. Continental AG has also announced plans to cut 3,000 jobs to be eliminated by 2026 while GM noted that it would cut half of its staff from its Cruise division.
2025 R&D LAYOFFS BY INDUSTRY (as of March 19, 2025)
Industry Total Layoffs % of Total
Energy 13,158 24.5%
Tech & Software 8,260 15.4%
Automotive & Autonomous 7,900 14.7%
Semiconductors 5,200 9.7%
Other 4,984 9.3%
Hardware 4,500 8.4%
Life Sciences & Healthcare 3,747 7.0%
Research 2,497 4.7%
Aerospace 2,427 4.5%
Retail & Consumer 632 1.2%
AI & Robotics 267 0.5%
Construction Tech 114 0.2%
TOTAL 53,686 100.0%
Note: The above tally is not exhaustive, but represents a considerable amount of data-gathering from a range of data sources.
Biopharma: Big Pharma optimizes as smaller biotechs struggle
March has seen major pharmaceutical companies implementing significant workforce reductions as part of broader cost-cutting and restructuring initiatives. Bristol Myers Squibb continues its ongoing $2 billion cost-reduction plan with 223 layoffs at its New Jersey R&D facility, effective between May and August 2025. Meanwhile, Novartis is cutting roughly 464 positions across two sites—closing its San Diego gene therapy production facility (34 jobs) while trimming nearly 430 roles at its East Hanover, NJ headquarters.
These larger pharma companies are trimming operations to focus resources on priority projects, following smaller biotechs that made more drastic cuts in January and February as funding remained tight.
Bristol Myers Squibb: 223 R&D positions cut in New Jersey
Novartis: 464 employees affected across San Diego and East Hanover sites
Major biotech restructurings continue: Building on February’s cuts at firms like Spotlight Therapeutics (complete shutdown) and Third Harmonic Bio (50% reduction)
Tech hardware consolidates amid AI pivot
Enterprise hardware giant Hewlett Packard Enterprise announced on March 6 its plan to eliminate about 2,500 jobs—approximately 5% of its global workforce. CEO Antonio Neri indicated these cuts will roll out over the next 12-18 months as part of a broader efficiency initiative. The reductions will affect significant R&D divisions in computing architecture, networking, and enterprise systems as HPE reallocates resources toward growth areas like AI and cloud services.
This follows February’s cuts at Hewlett-Packard (2,000 employees) affecting R&D teams across computing hardware, printing technology, and materials science divisions, and semiconductor manufacturers like Onsemi and NXP, which each announced cuts of thousands of positions.
Hewlett Packard Enterprise: 2,500 positions (5% of workforce)
Hewlett-Packard: 2,000 roles in R&D (from February)
Semiconductors feel pressure: Following February’s Onsemi (2,400 jobs) and NXP (1,800 jobs) announcements
Google: 25,000 staff offered buyouts in Platforms & Devices division.
Meta: 3,600 jobs cut (5% workforce), $60–65 billion AI investment.
Microsoft: Layoffs, $80 billion AI data centers.
AI startups not immune
Even as major tech companies pivot toward AI, smaller AI-focused startups are making strategic cuts to extend runway and focus resources. D-ID, an Israeli AI company specializing in creative media tools and face anonymization technology, laid off 22 employees (25% of its workforce) on March 10. Despite having raised $48 million to date, the Series B-funded company is streamlining operations to focus on its core computer vision and generative AI R&D.
This follows February cuts at other AI firms like Logically (40 employees, 20%) and Hugging Face (10 employees, 4%), indicating that even companies in high-growth sectors are being cautious about headcount and burn rates.
D-ID: 22 employees (25% of workforce)
AI sector adjustments: Following layoffs at Logically, Hugging Face, and Tabnine in February
The wave of R&D-focused layoffs that began in January continues unabated into March, suggesting a fundamental recalibration of innovation spending across multiple industries. Companies are increasingly selective about which research projects receive funding, with many citing the need to align R&D investments with near-term commercial potential or core strategic priorities.
Aerospace: Streamlining for survival
Aerospace, which faces high R&D costs and competition, is consolidating. Consider Boeing’s layoff of 400 employees from its moon rocket program on February 8, 2025, linked to delays in NASA’s Artemis mission. Then there’s Blue Origin, which on February 13, 2025, cut 1,400 jobs (10% workforce), while Eviation Aircraft announced large-scale layoffs on February 14, 2025 (numbers undisclosed). Other cuts, like Pratt & Whitney’s engineering layoffs on January 29, 2025 (tied to engine issues and cost overruns), and ZIN Technologies’ 27 R&D roles cut on January 14, 2025, show a sector streamlining to survive. While NASA was facing a planned 10% reduction, many workers appear to have been spared, according to Space.com.
Boeing: 400 layoffs from SLS program.
Blue Origin: 1,400 jobs cut (10% workforce).
Eviation: (undisclosed)
Biopharma: Pruning for focus
Biopharma, especially biotech, continues to face significant layoffs in early 2025, with some companies often cutting 20–100% of staff. For instance, Spotlight Therapeutics shut down entirely on February 20 (40 employees) after disappointing preclinical data. Third Harmonic Bio cut 50% of staff on February 12, 2025, to focus on THB335, while Encoded Therapeutics reduced 29% (60 employees) on February 14, prioritizing ETX101. Larger players like Novartis are also cutting, with 140 layoffs in New Jersey on February 18. Additionally, X4 Pharmaceuticals reduced its workforce by 30%, and Inventiva recently laid off roughly 50% of its employees to concentrate on its lead candidate. Zentalis axed 40% of its staff to prioritize cancer drug trials, while IGM Biosciences laid off 73% of employees after halting autoimmune programs. Even advanced CRISPR-focused startups such as Scribe Therapeutics cut 50% of its staff (30 employees), underscoring how the current funding crunch and rising interest rates are hitting R&D-heavy companies across the sector.
Spotlight Therapeutics: 100% layoffs (40 employees), shutdown after failed trials.
Third Harmonic Bio: 50% staff cut, focus on THB335.
Novartis: 140 layoffs in sales, protecting R&D budgets.
Energy sector retools
In the gritty reality of 2025’s energy sector, the numbers don’t lie: it’s shedding jobs faster than any R&D-heavy sector we’ve tracked so far this year. Chevron’s sizable axe, poised to chop 8,000 to 10,000 positions—15–20% of its global workforce—by 2026, looms over the horizon like a storm cloud, driven by a $3 billion cost-cutting blitz amid legal tangles over its Hess acquisition and crumbling refining margins. Across the Atlantic, BP has already slashed 4,700 roles (8.5% of its workforce, including 3,000 contractors) by mid-January, chasing $2 billion in savings as part of its own survival playbook. These aren’t isolated stumbles—SolarEdge in Tel Aviv eliminated 400 jobs in its fourth round of layoffs on January 6, battered by weak demand and excess inventory, while California’s Aurora Solar let go of 58 staffers on January 10, a smaller but telling cut in solar tech R&D. Some of these moves come as companies juggle allocating funds to energy-transition R&D while sustaining core fossil-fuel operations.
Chevron: Planning on cutting 15–20%.
BP: Cut 8.5% of its workforce in January.
SolarEdge: Eliminated 400 roles, while Aurora Solar laid off 58.
Automotive: Pivoting from full autonomy
While much of the focus has been on tech and aerospace, major automotive players are also trimming R&D in 2025. General Motors, for example, cut roughly 50% of the staff at its Cruise self-driving car unit (estimated 1,000 employees) after hitting regulatory and technical roadblocks with robotaxis. The changes appear to be part of a broader shift away from full electrification and fully autonomous projects in favor of more incremental driver-assist features that can be commercialized sooner. Ford and Stellantis have likewise scaled back certain autonomous R&D efforts, citing slower-than-expected market adoption and high development costs. Ford cut 200 employees from its autonomous vehicle division, while Stellantis let go of 150 workers tied to its self-driving partnerships.
General Motors (Cruise): 50% of staff cut (1,000 employees, est.).
Ford: 200 layoffs from autonomous vehicle division.
Stellantis: 150 layoffs tied to self-driving partnerships.
Other Sectors: Robotics, construction tech and public R&D
The wave of layoffs extends beyond the major industries highlighted. Robotics firms like Teradyne cut 140 jobs (10% of its robotics division), while construction tech company ICON laid off 114 employees (25% of staff) as it pivoted to robotic automation. Even public-sector R&D is not immune, with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) preparing to cut 497 probationary staff, including 74 postdocs and a significant portion of its CHIPS for America program, as part of broader federal budget constraints. These cuts, alongside planned reductions at agencies like the National Science Foundation (potentially up to 50%), would threaten a considerable share of federally funded research and development.
Teradyne: 140 layoffs (10% of robotics division).
ICON: 114 layoffs (25% of staff).
NIST: 497 layoffs, impacting AI Safety Institute and CHIPS program.
Building on the significant wave of layoffs documented in our 2024 roundup (which documented 200,000 layoffs across 101 major companies), the table below highlights the most recent R&D and tech-focused cuts announced in 2025—ranging from biotech to software companies and carbon capture innovators.
Stay tuned for regular updates, and if you’re hearing about other significant workforce shifts, send us a tip.