Jack Dorsey has announced plans to cut more than 4,000 jobs at Block, slashing the financial technology company’s workforce by nearly half despite robust business performance.
The Twitter co-founder emphasised that the decision was not driven by financial difficulties.
The chief executive revealed the cuts on Thursday, stating that artificial intelligence had fundamentally altered how businesses operate.
“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,” Mr Dorsey wrote in a lengthy post on X.
Block, the parent company of payment platforms Square and Cash App, will reduce its headcount from over 10,000 employees to just under 6,000.
The company recorded gross profit of £7.7billion last year, representing a 17 per cent increase compared to the previous year.
Block’s shares surged by as much as 27 per cent following Mr Dorsey’s announcement, with investors responding positively to the prospect of significant cost reductions.
The firm anticipates restructuring expenses of up to £370million as it transitions to its new operational approach.
Staff members being made redundant will receive 20 weeks’ salary plus an additional week for each year of service, along with equity vesting through the end of May and six months of healthcare coverage.
Departing employees will also retain their company devices and receive £3,700 to assist with their transition.
The firm anticipates restructuring expenses of up to £370million as it transitions to its new operational approach
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The chief executive argued that gradual cuts would damage morale, focus and the confidence that customers and shareholders have in leadership.
He acknowledged that Block had expanded too rapidly during the pandemic, with staff numbers ballooning from 3,900 to 12,500 over three years.
However, Mr Dorsey pushed back against criticism of management decisions, writing on X: “We have and do run an efficient company…better than most.”
He predicted that most businesses would reach similar conclusions about AI within the coming year.
AI is changing the economy | Reuters
Mr Dorsey explained his preference for decisive action over a prolonged period of workforce reductions.
“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,” he stated.
The job losses at Block represent one of the starkest examples yet of artificial intelligence reshaping employment across the technology sector.
Amazon eliminated 16,000 positions in January, having already removed 14,000 roles months earlier, with its chief financial officer citing cost reductions as the company increases AI investment.
Meta, Microsoft and Google have similarly reduced their workforces whilst pivoting towards substantial AI spending
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GOOGLEMeta, Microsoft and Google have similarly reduced their workforces whilst pivoting towards substantial AI spending.
Meta chief executive Mark Zuckerberg has said he expects 2026 to be “the year that AI dramatically changes the way we work”.
Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said Mr Dorsey “just did what most chief executives have only whispered about in boardrooms”.
He added: “Now we have a public case study where the CEO explicitly says intelligence tools have changed what it means to build and run a company.”