Here's what Google doesn't want you to know: their AI products only work because highly educated contractors spend their days fixing the stupid shit these models do. And now they're firing those people for having the audacity to ask for fair pay and job security.
The 200+ laid-off workers weren't writing marketing copy or managing social media accounts. These were specialists with advanced degrees whose job was training AI models, moderating content to prevent harmful outputs, and basically ensuring Google's AI doesn't recommend poison recipes or generate racist imagery. You know, the stuff that makes AI actually usable.
These people were getting screwed six ways from Sunday:
- Paid like junior developers despite having PhDs in machine learning
- No idea if they'd have work next month (great for career planning!)
- Working in whatever shitty office space Google could rent cheap
- Zero benefits while doing the most critical work at the company
Two workers finally said "fuck this" and filed complaints with the NLRB. Then - surprise! - Google suddenly decided their services were no longer needed. What a totally random coincidence that has nothing to do with labor retaliation at all.
Google's corporate response is peak Silicon Valley bullshit: "These individuals are employees of GlobalLogic or their subcontractors, not Alphabet." Translation: "We don't employ them directly so we can treat them like shit without legal consequences."
This is the contractor shell game that tech companies love. Hire specialized workers through third-party firms so you can claim they're "not your employees" when things get messy. Never mind that these contractors are doing core work that makes Google's AI products function.
And here's the cherry on this shit sundae: Google is getting sued left and right for their AI scraping up everyone's content without permission. Penske Media (Rolling Stone, Variety, Billboard) just hit them with a lawsuit this week over AI Overviews stealing their content. NYT and others are lining up behind them.
So Google's strategy is: fire the people who know how to build responsible AI systems while facing lawsuits for irresponsible AI systems. That's some galaxy-brain strategic thinking right there. They're trying to beat OpenAI and Anthropic in the AI race by... getting rid of the people who actually understand this shit?
The message is clear: Google wants AI workers who shut up, work cheap, and don't ask uncomfortable questions about working conditions. The people who actually care about doing the job right - the ones with enough expertise to know when something's wrong - are expendable.
For anyone working in AI right now, this should be a wake-up call. If Google will fire PhD-level AI specialists for organizing, what makes you think your job is safe?