Epic Games lays off 1,000 workers as its CEO says the cuts aren't tied to AI
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Epic Games, the video game maker behind Fortnite, is laying off more than 1,000 workers amid "extreme" market conditions and a downturn in engagement with its most popular game, CEO Tim Sweeney said in a blog post Tuesday. Edited by Aimee Picchi In:
Epic Games, the video game maker behind Fortnite, is laying off more than 1,000 workers amid "extreme" market conditions and a downturn in engagement with its most popular game, CEO Tim Sweeney said in a blog post Tuesday.
Its successful online video game Fortnite, which Epic developed in 2017, is now facing competition from "other increasingly-engaging forms of entertainment," Sweeney said.
Fortnite, which is available on multiple platforms such as the Nintendo Switch and Sony PlayStation, offers a battle-royale format where players compete to be the last one standing. But weaker consumer spending and sluggish demand for new video game consoles have made the job cuts necessary, Sweeney said.
Other forces contributed too, he added — although not artificial intelligence.
"Since it's a thing now, I should note that the layoffs aren't related to AI," Sweeney wrote. "To the extent it improves productivity, we want to have as many awesome developers developing great content and tech as we can."
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