Only days after announcing the largest restructuring in Xbox history and a plan affecting 3,200 jobs, Asha Sharma has been given an advisory role on one of the Federal Reserve’s new task forces. The Xbox CEO will help examine how artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies could influence employment, productivity, and the wider economy. The purpose of the appointment is clear, but its timing has prompted a strong backlash among players.
The Federal Reserve announcement arrived during one of the most difficult weeks Xbox has faced. Microsoft’s gaming division is eliminating 1,600 positions immediately, while another 1,600 roles are expected to disappear before the end of the current financial year, bringing the planned total to approximately 3,200. Sharma described the changes as the most significant restructuring in Xbox history, with the company aiming to reduce management layers, accelerate decision-making, and lower operating costs. Xbox has publicly acknowledged that its present business model is not healthy and that its margins remain far below those of comparable platform and publishing companies.
The studio network is also being reshaped. Compulsion Games and Double Fine Productions are moving toward independence while retaining their intellectual properties and back catalogues. Ninja Theory and Undead Labs are expected to transition to new ownership, while discussions are underway regarding the future of Arkane Lyon. Layoffs have also affected several teams across Microsoft’s gaming organization, including parts of Bethesda, meaning community sentiment was already extremely tense when Sharma’s new advisory position became public.
Asha Sharma Has Joined a Federal Reserve Task Force as an External Adviser
The Federal Reserve has established five new task forces to examine different aspects of the central bank’s operations and monetary policy framework. Sharma has been named one of three external leaders of the Productivity and Jobs group. She is not becoming a Federal Reserve employee or policymaker, but will instead contribute as an outside adviser. The group is co-led by technology investor Marc Andreessen and Stanford University economics professor Charles I. Jones.
Its purpose is to study how general-purpose technologies, including artificial intelligence, may affect productivity, employment, and the broader economy. Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh said the findings should help policymakers better understand the economic consequences of emerging technologies and incorporate those effects into decisions connected to employment and inflation. Sharma previously held a senior position in Microsoft’s artificial intelligence organization, giving her professional background a clear connection to the task force’s technological focus.
The criticism from players has focused less on the advisory role itself than on the timing of the announcement. Many consider it deeply ironic that the executive leading a restructuring involving thousands of lost jobs was appointed to a group examining employment and productivity only days later. There is no official connection between the two developments, and the task force is not responsible for reviewing corporate layoffs, but the symbolism has nevertheless generated a powerful reaction.
Sharma is continuing with the broader Xbox reset, which is intended to create a flatter, faster, and more cost-efficient organization. Microsoft argues that the restructuring can eventually return the gaming business to growth while maintaining major investment in Xbox. Over the coming months, however, the loss of 3,200 positions, the departure of several studios, and the uncertainty facing remaining employees are likely to shape public opinion far more strongly than Sharma’s new advisory role at the Federal Reserve.
Source: 3DJuegos, Federal Reserve, Xbox Wire
