Microsoft lays off the gaming metaverse team, pivoting towards the commercial metaverse and injecting $10 billion into OpenAI.

Microsoft (MSFT) announced last week that it will be laying off 5% of its workforce, totaling up to 10,000 employees, including the team behind the "metaverse": AltSpaceVR.

Investing $10 Billion in OpenAI

Following the success of the ChatGPT chatbot, the team behind OpenAI has also garnered attention. Microsoft announced today (24) that it will be injecting billions of dollars into OpenAI, with the investment set to unfold over several years to expand the collaboration between the two parties.

This marks Microsoft's third investment in OpenAI, the first being in 2019 and the most recent in 2021.

In addition to funding, OpenAI also requires Microsoft's cloud computing capabilities to handle massive amounts of data and run increasingly complex models.

Since 2016, Microsoft has been working to transform Azure into an AI supercomputer and has already used OpenAI's infrastructure to build multiple AI systems.

In a statement, Microsoft Chairman and CEO Satya Nadella stated:

"We have partnered with OpenAI with the shared goal of advancing cutting-edge artificial intelligence research, democratizing AI, and making it a new technology platform."

While the statement outlines the purpose of Microsoft's investment, the actual amount has not been disclosed. However, sources familiar with the matter indicate that the funding is approximately $10 billion.