Microsoft Culls Metaverse Team It Created 4 Months Ago

Microsoft’s metaverse team was let go along with 4.5% of the company’s workforce last month

article-image

The Art of Pics/Shutterstock.com modified by Blockworks

share

Software giant Microsoft has culled its metaverse team, which it formed just four months ago, The Information first reported.

The team, dubbed Industrial Metaverse Core Team, was formed in October and tasked to build industrial networks and assist users with metaverse operations. 

It worked with customers across various industries including healthcare, retail and financial services. 

Notable clients included Coca-Cola, Unilever and General Motors, the executive vice president and chief commercial officer of Microsoft, Judson Althoff, said at a conference in September.

Four months later, the team comprising an estimated 100 employees was let go as part of the company’s 10,000-person job cut in January.

The majority of the metaverse team was made up of individuals who were part of Project Bonsai — a company that Microsoft had acquired in 2018. 

Bonsai is a ‘low-code AI development platform,’ which is designed to provide operators with equipment that can help them optimize processes. According to The Information, Bonsai’s co-founders Mark Hammond and Keen Browne had also been laid off.

“While we don’t comment on specific staffing details, Microsoft remains committed to the industrial metaverse,” a Microsoft spokesperson told Blockworks. “We are applying our focus to the areas of the industrial metaverse that matter most to our customers and they will see no change in how they are supported.”

Updated on Feb. 10, 2023 at 1:25 pm ET: Added comment from Microsoft.


Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:

Tags

Decoding crypto and the markets. Daily, with Byron Gilliam.

Upcoming Events

Javits Center North | 445 11th Ave

Tues - Thurs, March 24 - 26, 2026

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

recent research

Unlocked by Template.png

Research

The march toward an interoperable and onchain-by-default internet depends on reliable messaging and value transfer across heterogeneous domains. Crosschain protocols now process >$1.3T in combined annual transfer volume and secure tens of millions of user interactions, yet no single design dominates.

article-image

The goal, per Santiago Santos, is to make crypto a relatable piece of tech for people who may not even understand it

article-image

Stripe stablecoin unit aims to operate under a federal charter enabling regulated stablecoin issuance and custody services

by Blockworks /
article-image

Will TradFi make crypto better or create more problems than it solves?

article-image

Subtle decisions by risk curators saved Aave from significant turmoil

article-image

The new Rootstock Institutional unit aims to connect professional investors to Bitcoin-native yield and liquidity strategies anchored in BTC’s security layer

by Blockworks /
article-image

DOJ files record civil forfeiture against more than 127,000 BTC linked to scam activity

by Blockworks /