H-1B engineers are leaving Big Tech before the layoffs even find them

Amazon, Microsoft, Alphabet, Meta and Apple have collectively cut more than 100,000 jobs since 2022.

US tech-sector layoffs reached roughly 150,000 workers between January and July 2026, per Challenger, Gray & Christmas.

H-1B visa holders get just 60 days after a layoff to find a new sponsoring employer, change status, or leave the country.

'Magnificent 7' companies including Amazon and Microsoft have had over 200,000 H-1B applications approved since October 2020.

Some visa holders are leaving proactively for smaller US firms or relocating to Canada, Australia and Europe rather than risk the 60-day scramble.

My take

This reads like a quiet brain-drain story hiding inside a bigger layoff headline. The people leaving preemptively are disproportionately the ones with the best options elsewhere — a chipmaker offer,…