Google laying off hundreds of AR employees, Fitbit leaders move on

Google is laying off hundreds of hardware employees, especially in the augmented reality (AR) division while Fitbit co-founders James Park, Eric Friedman and other Fitbit leaders are reportedly leaving the company.

Google had acquired wearable company Fitbit for $2.1 billion in 2019.

“A few hundred roles are being eliminated in DSPA (Devices and Services) with the majority of impacts on the 1P AR Hardware team,” a Google spokesperson said in a statement.

The Devices & Services teams are responsible for Pixel, Nest, and Fitbit devices. “While we are making changes to our 1P AR hardware team, Google continues to be deeply committed to other AR initiatives, such as AR experiences in our products, and product partnerships,” the spokesperson told 9to5Google.

The company said that it remains committed to “serving our Fitbit users well, innovating in the health space with personal AI, and building on the momentum with Pixel Watch, the redesigned Fitbit app, Fitbit Premium service, and the Fitbit tracker line”.

“This work will continue to be a key part of our new org model,” said the tech giant.

Google is switching to a functional organisation model where there will be one team responsible for hardware engineering across Pixel, Nest, and Fitbit hardware. There will be a single leader for such products across all Google hardware, according to reports.

Google has shifted its work on AR to the Android and hardware teams.