Jack Dorsey's Block cuts nearly half of its staff in AI gamble

"We're not making this decision because we're in trouble. Our business is strong. Gross profit continues to grow, we continue to serve more and more customers, and profitability is improving. But something has changed. We're already seeing that the intelligence tools we're creating and using, paired with smaller and flatter teams, are enabling a new way of working which fundamentally changes what it means to build and run a company."

"I'd rather take a hard, clear action now and build from a position we believe in than manage a slow reduction of people toward the same outcome."

"We believe Block will be significantly more valuable as a smaller, faster, intelligence-native company. Everything we do from here is in service of that."

Block, the financial technology company operating Square and Cash App, is reducing its workforce from over 10,000 to fewer than 6,000 employees. CEO Jack Dorsey attributes this decision to artificial intelligence transforming work dynamics, allowing smaller and flatter teams to accomplish more. Despite the significant layoffs, Block maintains strong business fundamentals with growing gross profit, expanding customer base, and improving profitability. Dorsey chose immediate, decisive action over gradual reductions, believing this approach better positions the company. The company aims to become smaller, faster, and intelligence-native, with all future operations serving this strategic direction.

Read at The Verge