Apple cuts 200 jobs across Siri, Vision Pro, and gaming teams

Apple is trimming more than 200 roles across its Siri, Vision Pro, and gaming teams as it pivots toward AI and lighter wearables.

Apple is cutting more than 200 jobs across its Siri, Vision Pro immersive video, and gaming teams, a restructuring that points to a strategic shift away from its $3,499 headset toward AI and lighter wearables. The reductions, reported by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, follow roughly 60 layoffs in Apple's Vision Products Group disclosed a day earlier.

"While we will create new roles as part of this change, it will also impact a limited number of existing roles," Apple said in a statement. "We are grateful to these team members for their contributions, and we are committed to supporting them throughout their transition, including opportunities to apply for other roles at Apple."

The cuts span Apple Vision Immersive Video, Apple Vision gaming, and Siri. The Siri reductions stem from an architectural change in the assistant's AI integrations, with some roles eliminated and others created. The gaming-adjacent cuts reflect weak interest in gaming on the platform — third-party efforts like iVRY can stream Steam VR titles to the headset but still require an external Windows PC. Immersive Video layoffs are largely a cost measure, since each episode costs millions of dollars to film against limited platform uptake.

Apple has told employees visionOS is not going away, and the company recently shipped visionOS 27. But it will produce fewer in-house immersive videos like Submerged and instead encourage outside studios to make the content. A new Apple Vision Pro model is still rumored for 2028, though plans could shift as a new chief executive takes over.

The restructuring lands as incoming CEO John Ternus prepares to lead Apple, with reports that he would put the Vision Pro category "on ice." Mike Rockwell, who previously oversaw the Vision Products Group, has moved into a key role running the Siri revamp. Apple executive Steve Sinclair has pushed back on speculation that the headset was shelved, calling spatial computing "still early innings."

The pivot mirrors a broader industry shift. Meta has cut hundreds of jobs in its Reality Labs division as it moves away from its metaverse ambitions, while Microsoft trimmed 4,800 roles in July, mostly across its Xbox gaming division. Apple's pullback from immersive video and gaming suggests the company is concentrating resources on Siri AI and smart glasses, where consumer interest is stronger than in heavy VR headsets.

For investors, the cuts show Apple reallocating capital from a low-volume hardware category toward AI features that could drive services revenue. Apple shares traded at $308.66, down 2.64 percent, as the market weighed the strategic pivot. The company has not disclosed the financial impact of the layoffs, and a timeline for the Siri architectural overhaul has not been set.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.