Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer in New York on Nov. 12, 2024. (Photo: Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg/Getty Images)

Microsoft announced on Thursday that it will cut approximately 9,000 jobs, representing just under 4% of its global workforce, in its largest round of layoffs since 2023. 

The reductions, which span multiple divisions, geographies, and levels of seniority, come as the company continues to report robust financial results but seeks to streamline operations and adapt to rapid shifts in the technology landscape.

Microsoft made the move despite posting an 18% year-over-year increase in net income last quarter, reaching $25.8 billion.

In its official statement, Microsoft said: “We continue to implement organizational changes necessary to best position the company and teams for success in a dynamic marketplace.”

The layoffs are expected to impact sales, customer-facing roles, and the Xbox gaming division. 

The latest round is part of a broader restructuring effort that has now seen over 15,000 jobs eliminated this year, including 6,000 positions in May. 

Microsoft’s move reflects a wider trend among major technology companies, many of which are undergoing similar workforce reductions as they double down on artificial intelligence. —Jim Edwards

Chinese smartphone brand Honor launched what promises to be the world’s thinnest foldable phone—just 4.1 millimeters thick when unfolded—on Wednesday as it seeks to regain lost ground in China’s competitive phone market.

The Magic V5’s thinness is made possible by innovations in its silicon-carbon battery, which stacks cells just 0.2 millimeters thick to create a battery that’s as thin as a bank card. 

The new phone is also light: At just 217 grams, the Magic V5 weighs less than the iPhone 16 Pro Max.

Honor says it invested 1 billion Chinese yuan ($139 million) towards researching its silicon-carbon battery technology. The company invests over 10% of its total revenue towards R&D each year.

“In terms of materials, structure, craftsmanship…everything is extremely costly from an R&D perspective,” Hope Cao, Honor’s product expert on foldables, tells Fortune.

Foldables represent a small but rapidly expanding segment of the Chinese smartphone market. Sales in this category grew by 27% last year, according to Counterpoint Research.

Book-type foldables, which open along the longer edge to create a larger screen, are particularly popular.

Honor was once Huawei’s budget smartphone division. U.S. sanctions forced the Chinese tech giant to offload the company in late 2020. 

The company had a 13% share of China’s smartphone market in the first quarter of 2025, according to Counterpoint, close behind Vivo, Oppo and Apple. —Nicholas Gordon

Big news in crypto: Ripple has applied for a U.S. banking license.

The blockchain company led by CEO Brad Garlinghouse filed its application on Wednesday, according to the Wall Street Journal. ​​

A national banking license enables the company to, well, do bank things—accept deposits, make loans, manage transactions, issue debit and credit cards, and participate in the Federal Reserve System. 

Beyond that, it’s a symbol of stability for a crypto category that has been anything but over the last decade and a half.

Ripple’s dollar-backed stablecoin, called RLUSD, is currently subject to New York state oversight; a national trust bank charter would subject it to oversight by the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.

(For the non-crypto readers: A stablecoin is pegged to a government-issued currency like the dollar. Reserves are kept in cash, Treasurys, or other “safe” assets.)

Why now? Congress is on the cusp of advancing legislation to bring stablecoins into the mainstream. 

The GENIUS Act, which establishes a regulatory framework for stablecoins, passed in the Senate last month; its next stop is the U.S. House of Representatives. —AN

—Stargate spreads. OpenAI will reportedly rent even more computing power from Oracle. 

—Baidu overhauls search. Its biggest revamp in years is credited to the incorporation of AI.

—Amazon goes back to basics. CEO Andy Jassy’s latest move is to grade employees on the company’s 16 leadership principles.

—Netflix-Spotify? Reported talks of a partnership to sweeten subscriptions. (Bundle alert!)

—The new CEO flex: Bragging that AI handles a percentage of the company’s work.

—Datadog joins S&P 500. The monitoring software company replaces Juniper Networks, which was acquired by HPE.

—TikTok’s latest AI-generated videos: Racist, antisemitic slop that hijacks the algorithm.