Sometimes layoffs are designed to give air cover for execs that want to get rid of "networks of detractors" who are causing problems, like how in a game company there might be a network of influential luddites who oppose use of LLMs over ideological reasons, even if the use case is good.
IMO those are virtuous layoffs, sometimes you need to clear your company culture of troublemakers who are getting in the way of company strategy.
I suppose there are firms large enough to make that work.
Having worked at a smaller firm with 15 SWEs that employed this strategy, they lost their 3 critics and proceeded to lose another 8, myself included, due to loss of confidence in leadership in the immediate (3-6 months) of the initial culling.
IMO those are virtuous layoffs, sometimes you need to clear your company culture of troublemakers who are getting in the way of company strategy.