The past couple of weeks brought some bad news for tech workers across the U.S. with reported layoffs and shutdowns reaching from Kentucky to California in a variety of sectors.
Even tech behemoth got in on the layoffs action with a report that it is paring workers from its , and departments. It鈥檚 unclear exactly how many staffers were let go, but according to the , the divisional cuts were small and made to 鈥渆nsure resources are aligned with [the divisions鈥橾 long-term strategic goals and location strategy.鈥�
AI joins the layoffs tracker again this week with Berkeley, California-based throwing in the towel. According to , the check-out free tech startup 鈥� which reached deals with grocer and several convenience stores including , and 鈥� was looking at a possible run for the public markets in the next couple of years. However, the funding downturn thwarted those plans and the company, founded as a startup competitor to e-commerce titan , made the tough decision to cease operations.
The e-commerce sector saw a total shutdown of Louisville, Kentucky鈥檚 outdoor shopping/social commerce startup . Founded in 2017 as a platform to promote the outdoors lifestyle, the startup was unable to make the leap from seed to Series A, raising its final seed round in 2021. Meanwhile in Atlanta, another startup failing to reach the Series A funding stage was financial inclusion digital bank . Backed by notable investors and , the fintech, founded in 2017, called it quits this week.
And finally, New York-based , a computer software company that offers a web-based motion design platform, posted on its website that it has begun to wind down. According to a on the company鈥檚 site, the platform will shut down completely on Nov. 15. It鈥檚 unclear how many workers will be affected.
The following companies were added to the tracker this week:
Layoffs during the week ended Oct. 18, 2024: At least 399 U.S. tech sector employees were laid off or scheduled for layoffs, per a Crunchbase News tally.
In 2024: At least 87,836听workers at U.S.-based tech companies have lost their jobs so far in the year, according to a Crunchbase News tally.
In 2023: More than 191,000 workers in U.S.-based tech companies (or tech companies with a large U.S. workforce) were laid off in mass job cuts.
In 2022: More than 93,000 jobs were slashed from public and private tech companies in the U.S.
This tracker includes layoffs conducted by U.S.-based companies or those with a strong U.S. presence and is updated at least weekly. We鈥檝e included both startups and publicly traded, tech-heavy companies. We鈥檝e also included companies based elsewhere that have a sizable team in the United States, such as , even when it鈥檚 unclear how much of the U.S. workforce has been affected by layoffs.
Layoff and workforce figures are best estimates based on reporting. We source the layoffs from media reports, our own reporting, social media posts and , a crowdsourced database of tech layoffs.
We recently updated our layoffs tracker to reflect the most recent round of layoffs each company has conducted. This allows us to quickly and more accurately track layoff trends, which is why you might notice some changes in our most recent numbers.
If an employee headcount cannot be confirmed to our standards, we note it as 鈥渦nclear.鈥�
A layoff can be either a permanent termination of someone鈥檚 employment 鈥� usually for cost-saving reasons 鈥� or a temporary one because there鈥檚 not enough work to justify a full workforce. Tech company layoffs generally fall into the permanent category.听
A mass layoff is when a significant number of a company鈥檚 employees are cut in a short period of time, often as a result of economic conditions.听
Tech layoffs increased throughout 2022 and 2023. Companies have given various reasons for conducting layoffs.听
Some companies 鈥� especially those in the e-commerce sector 鈥� nearly doubled their employee headcount to meet consumer demand during the COVID-19 pandemic鈥檚 stay-at-home mandates, and now find that they are overstaffed for the current economic climate.
Large tech employers such as and parent have noted that the recent layoffs follow several years of rapid hiring fueled by fast growth 鈥� between 2019 and 2022, some companies nearly doubled their employee headcount. Some large tech companies that have done layoffs have also cited a decline in their stock price, slowing sales and fears of a recession as reasons for downsizing.听
layoffs led the 2023 numbers with 16,000 roles cut.听
Layoffs at , the parent company of , totaled about 12,000. 鈥檚 layoffs total about 10,000 workers, as do parent 鈥檚 layoffs. Together with , these tech companies conducted the largest layoffs of the past two years, totaling tens of thousands of roles.
While those numbers are alarming, as of early April 2023 the combined layoffs at these companies represent only 8% of the number of new hires they made during the pandemic.听
Many other venture-backed tech startups have also done layoffs, pointing to a slowdown in venture capital funding and falling startup valuations as factors in their decisions to conduct layoffs.
Yes, more layoffs are likely coming. While there are signs that the volume of layoffs is tapering, experts we talked to expect job cuts in the tech sector to continue for the foreseeable future as large tech companies and startups continue to battle economic headwinds.
Seed and early-stage startups in particular may continue to conduct layoffs in an attempt to extend their cash runways in a difficult venture funding environment.
Tech layoffs noticeably increased at the start of 2022, ramped up in 2023, and have continued in 2024.
Signs that may indicate a company is more likely to conduct layoffs include:
Layoffs are expected to continue in 2024. Startups that need to preserve cash to extend their runways are more likely to conduct layoffs.
Tech layoffs will likely slow when we see more down rounds and when the global economy improves. In a down round, a company raises funds at a lower valuation than its previous financing round.
Startups that raised capital during the venture funding heyday at inflated valuations in 2021 are more likely to need to conduct layoffs in 2024.
Around 200,000 U.S. tech employees were laid off in 2023, according to our Tech Layoffs Tracker. That’s more than double the听93,000 estimated U.S. tech employees who were laid off in 2022.
No, according to experts in the sector, who say a sale is unlikely to solve a tech company鈥檚 cash-flow issues. This is especially true as fewer startup M&A deals are happening in the current downturn.
Tech layoffs have hit across departments at many companies.
Many layoffs from the large tech giants were software engineers. Startups tend to be more likely to retain engineers in favor of doing layoffs in their talent and recruiting, marketing and other departments.听
cut roles in its sales, recruiting, product and engineering teams. layoffs included jobs in its cloud unit, at its social video platform , and in its advertising department. CEO said the company鈥檚 recruiting department would be the first to see job cuts.
Follow all of our tech layoffs news here and track which companies are cutting jobs with the layoffs tracker above.
While not daily, this Crunchbase Tech Layoffs Tracker is updated weekly, if not more frequently, with the latest job cuts at U.S. tech employers.听
Many tech companies continue to hire for open roles, despite layoffs in the sector. Find out more about Crunchbase鈥檚 Actively Hiring filter and how you can find companies with multiple open roles.
Crunchbase News also highlights recently funded startups that are actively hiring in our weekly Who鈥檚 Hiring feature. You can find all of our job market-related news here.
Yes. Please cite Crunchbase News and include a link to this Tech Layoffs Tracker.
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