PayPal, Block, iRobot job cuts end grim January

The tech industry has had a rough start to the new year. As the first month of 2024 comes to a close, it goes out in much the same way as it came in: with more tech layoffs. According to tech layoff tracker Layoffs.fyi, January 2024 has seen a total of 28,970 jobs lost across 104 companies. In the past two days alone, job cuts at several high-profile tech companies were revealed. They include:

• PayPal: On Tuesday, PayPal CEO Alex Chriss sent a letter to employees saying executives have decided to “right size” the company by laying off workers and eliminating open roles, Bloomberg reported. The company will cut around 2,500 jobs, which equals about 9% of its total workforce. In recent years, PayPal has seen stiff competition from the likes of Apple and Zelle. Chriss said the layoffs will allow the company to “move with the speed needed to deliver for our customers and drive profitable growth.”
• Block: PayPal isn’t the only payment provider to announce layoffs this week. Block, run by Twitter founder Jack Dorsey, announced it would also cut jobs. Block’s offerings include Cash App and Square, and the layoffs will reportedly hit those divisions as well as Foundational. In an email to employees about the layoffs, Dorsey said the company was “parting ways with a large number of our teammates” without specifying a figure. However, a source told Business Insider that the number of layoffs was close to 1,000. (We’ve reached out to Block to confirm that figure.) Block previously laid off 40 employees at Tidal in December. 
• Noom: The popular weight loss app has laid off a number of its employees. The exact number of roles eliminated is unknown. (We’re reached out to Noom for more details.) Endpoints News reported that the cuts involved those in coaching and engineering roles. In a statement, a Noom spokesperson confirmed there were job cuts at the company, saying, “As part of Noom’s continuing efforts to build a more efficient company focused on meeting the evolving needs of our customers, we made the difficult decision to reduce a portion of our workforce. The changes were made to streamline the business and reduce costs.”
• iRobot: Roomba maker iRobot Corporation has had a bad month. First, the company and Amazon announced they were mutually calling off Amazon’s planned acquisition of iRobot. Now the company has announced it is laying off 350 of its employees—roughly 31% of the company. In addition to the workforce layoffs, iRobot’s CEO Colin Angle also stepped down immediately.

The tech industry has had a rough start to the new year. As the first month of 2024 comes to a close, it goes out in much the same way as it came in: with more tech layoffs. According to tech layoff tracker Layoffs.fyi, January 2024 has seen a total of 28,970 jobs lost across 104 companies. In the past two days alone, job cuts at several high-profile tech companies were revealed. They include:

• PayPal: On Tuesday, PayPal CEO Alex Chriss sent a letter to employees saying executives have decided to “right size” the company by laying off workers and eliminating open roles, Bloomberg reported. The company will cut around 2,500 jobs, which equals about 9% of its total workforce. In recent years, PayPal has seen stiff competition from the likes of Apple and Zelle. Chriss said the layoffs will allow the company to “move with the speed needed to deliver for our customers and drive profitable growth.”
• Block: PayPal isn’t the only payment provider to announce layoffs this week. Block, run by Twitter founder Jack Dorsey, announced it would also cut jobs. Block’s offerings include Cash App and Square, and the layoffs will reportedly hit those divisions as well as Foundational. In an email to employees about the layoffs, Dorsey said the company was “parting ways with a large number of our teammates” without specifying a figure. However, a source told Business Insider that the number of layoffs was close to 1,000. (We’ve reached out to Block to confirm that figure.) Block previously laid off 40 employees at Tidal in December. 
• Noom: The popular weight loss app has laid off a number of its employees. The exact number of roles eliminated is unknown. (We’re reached out to Noom for more details.) Endpoints News reported that the cuts involved those in coaching and engineering roles. In a statement, a Noom spokesperson confirmed there were job cuts at the company, saying, “As part of Noom’s continuing efforts to build a more efficient company focused on meeting the evolving needs of our customers, we made the difficult decision to reduce a portion of our workforce. The changes were made to streamline the business and reduce costs.”
• iRobot: Roomba maker iRobot Corporation has had a bad month. First, the company and Amazon announced they were mutually calling off Amazon’s planned acquisition of iRobot. Now the company has announced it is laying off 350 of its employees—roughly 31% of the company. In addition to the workforce layoffs, iRobot’s CEO Colin Angle also stepped down immediately.