Amazon Layoffs Trigger Tech Wave: Chegg Forced to Slash 45% Workforce

Chegg Forced to Slash 45% Workforce
Source: Watcher.Guru

Chegg layoffs have hit the education tech sector hard, and the company announced on Monday that it’s cutting 45% of its workforce—that’s 388 employees who will lose their jobs. The decision comes as the online education platform struggles with what it calls the “new realities of artificial intelligence” and also declining traffic from Google searches. At the same time, Amazon layoffs are expanding across the tech industry, with sources revealing that the e-commerce giant is targeting as many as 30,000 corporate job cuts starting Tuesday. These Chegg layoffs in 2025 and amazon layoffs today represent one of the most significant workforce shake-ups the tech sector has seen in recent years.

Also Read: Amazon Layoffs Expand Across Departments in AI Overhaul

Chegg Layoffs Today And Amazon Layoffs Expand Shake Tech Workforce

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Source: Finbold

Education Platform Faces Existential AI Crisis

The Chegg layoffs today mark the second major reduction this year, and it’s actually a clear sign of how much pressure AI tools like ChatGPT have put on traditional education companies. Back in May, Chegg had already cut 22% of its workforce, citing increasing AI adoption as the main reason. Now, just five months later, the company is being forced to make even deeper cuts with these latest Chegg layoffs.

Dan Rosensweig is returning as CEO effective immediately, replacing Nathan Schultz, who will step down from the role and remain as an executive advisor. The numbers tell a stark story, really. Chegg went public in 2013 and saw its stock price hit a high of $113.51 in February 2021, boosted by the Covid pandemic and a shift to remote learning. The stock has since lost 99% of its value, and right now its market cap has fallen from about $14.7 billion to roughly $156 million.

The timing seems weird though, because rumors about the company exploring a sale got people really upset. Management’s defensive response to these concerns catalyzed numerous significant market reactions.

According to the sources, Nathan Schultz stated:

“Leading Chegg has been a privilege. Over my 18 years at the company, we have helped millions of students learn and had a meaningful impact on their lives.”

Amazon’s Massive Corporate Restructuring Plan

The Amazon layoffs expand significantly beyond what many analysts had predicted, actually. According to three people familiar with the matter, the figure of 30,000 represents a small percentage of Amazon’s 1.55 million total employees, but nearly 10% of its roughly 350,000 corporate employees. This would mark Amazon’s largest job cut since late 2022, when it started to eliminate around 27,000 positions.

Chegg has been vocal about what’s causing its problems. The company sued Google in February, arguing that AI summaries of search results have hurt its traffic and sales. On Monday, the company reiterated this, saying the “new realities of AI and reduced traffic from Google to content publishers have led to a significant decline in Chegg’s traffic and revenue.” These challenges directly tie to the Chegg layoffs in 2025.

The company offers textbook rentals, homework help and tutoring, along with a newer suite of AI tools like a service that automatically generates flashcards. But students are increasingly turning to free alternatives, and that’s eating away at the subscriber base month after month. Along with the workforce cuts, Chegg reported a 31% drop in subscribers for the first quarter, bringing the total to 3.2 million.

Multiple Divisions Wil Be Affected

At the time of writing, the cuts will affect multiple divisions, including human resources, devices, services, and operations. Amazon is making these job cuts to correct for overhiring during the peak demand of the pandemic. When Covid-19 hit and online shopping surged, Amazon expanded rapidly to meet demand. Now, as consumer behavior has normalized and economic pressures mount, the company is paring expenses and compensating for those aggressive hiring decisions. Sources describe the Amazon layoffs today as the largest in the company’s corporate history.

According to the sources, Andy Jassy stated:

“We will need fewer people doing some of the jobs that are being done today, and more people doing other types of jobs. It’s hard to know exactly where this nets out over time, but in the next few years, we expect that this will reduce our total corporate workforce as we get efficiency gains from using AI extensively across the company.”

Leadership Changes Signal Major Strategic Shift

As part of Monday’s announcement, Chegg also said it plans to remain a standalone company, ending a strategic review process that began earlier this year. Over the past year, Chegg worked together with its advisor Goldman Sachs and conducted a comprehensive strategic review evaluating different potential outcomes. The board determined that staying independent offers the best opportunity to maximize shareholder value, according to the company’s statement. These Chegg layoffs in 2025 are part of a broader restructuring aimed at reducing costs.

Also Read: Amazon Is “The” AI Stock You Should Be Gunning For : Here’s Why

“The timing is particularly difficult given that in April, the New York Stock Exchange even threatened to delist Chegg. The company received the warning when the stock was trading at about 60 cents—trading below $1 over a consecutive 30 trading-day period triggers a warning. By May, the stock climbed back over $1, but these massive Chegg layoffs raise questions about the company’s long-term viability.

No Company Is Immune

According to the sources, Dan Rosensweig stated:

“As I return to the CEO role, I’m confident Chegg has a bright future, and I look forward to exploring all paths to drive growth and enhance shareholder value.”

The combination of these workforce reductions shows that no company is immune to the disruption AI is causing right now. Corporate roles that involve routine tasks and information processing are particularly vulnerable, and thousands of workers are now facing an uncertain job market. Amazon shares rose 1.2% following the layoff announcement, which suggests investors view the cuts as fiscally responsible rather than a sign of trouble.

For Chegg, the situation is far more dire. The restructuring will reduce 2026 expenses by approximately $100-110 million, and the company expects to incur charges of roughly $15 million to $19 million related to these Chegg layoffs today. As of Monday, more than 200 tech companies have laid off approximately 98,000 employees since the start of the year, according to Layoffs.fyi, and the Amazon layoffs expand this trend even further across the industry