WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Microsoft said Monday it was eliminating about 4,800 jobs — roughly two per cent of its global workforce — in a cost-cutting move that will deliver a sweeping restructuring of its struggling Xbox gaming division.

The cuts include the deepest overhaul in Xbox’s history, with approximately 3,200 gaming jobs to be shed over the coming fiscal year, four game studios being spun off or sold, and a fifth entering a review process that could lead to closure, the company said.

The announcement is the latest in a string of mass layoffs by the technology giant as it spends massive amounts of money to stay in the artificial intelligence race, with companies investing tens of billions of dollars in AI-ready data centers and computing power.