According to one executive aware of the development, the impacted employees received termination emails without prior discussions. “Similar to the global layoffs, the impacted employees received cold emails, and have been offered four-six months’ salary as severance,” the executive said. The source also stated that the company did not hold any formal conversations with the affected workers before issuing the notices.

Meta India did not respond to detailed queries regarding the layoffs. Industry estimates suggest that Meta employs around 400 people in India, although the company does not publicly disclose country-specific workforce numbers.

Recently, Meta initiated one of the largest restructuring exercises in its history by cutting nearly 8,000 jobs globally, representing almost 10% of its worldwide workforce. Reports revealed that the company informed several affected employees through emails sent as early as 4 am. At the same time, Meta reassigned nearly 7,000 employees to AI-focused projects and operational initiatives while also reducing managerial layers within the organisation. Reuters reported last week that the layoffs and transfers together affected nearly 20% of the company’s workforce.

Furthermore, internal memos reportedly revealed that Meta aims to create “flatter” and “more agile” organisations capable of moving faster in the AI era. Gale reportedly informed employees that the restructuring would help establish smaller teams with greater ownership while shifting company resources toward AI-native initiatives.

Meanwhile, Meta significantly increased its investment commitments toward artificial intelligence infrastructure and innovation. During the March quarter earnings meeting, the company raised its 2026 capital expenditure forecast to between $125 billion and $145 billion, reflecting a nearly 87% year-on-year increase.

Defending the layoffs internally, Mark Zuckerberg told employees, “Success isn’t a given. AI is the most consequential technology of our lifetimes.” He further added in an internal memo, “The companies that lead the way will define the next generation.”

The latest Meta layoffs in India highlight the growing transformation within the global technology sector as companies increasingly prioritise artificial intelligence, automation, and leaner organisational structures. As major tech firms continue reshaping their workforce strategies, AI-led restructuring is likely to redefine hiring patterns, operational models, and future job roles across the industry.

The company linked the layoffs to what it described as an “agentic AI-first operating model” rather than employee performance or short-term cost-cutting measures. According to sources, co-founders and chief executives Matthew Prince and Michelle Zatlyn shared the announcement with employees through an internal message.

Cloudflare employed 5,156 full-time workers at the end of 2025, based on company filings. Additionally, the company expects to incur restructuring charges ranging between $140 million and $150 million, with most expenses expected during the second quarter of 2026.

In a company blog post, Prince and Zatlyn revealed that Cloudflare increased its internal use of AI tools by more than sixfold during the past three months. “The way we work at Cloudflare has fundamentally changed,” the executives wrote, adding that employees across departments already use “thousands of AI agent sessions each day.”

The leadership team stated that Cloudflare is now “reimagining every team and function” for what it called the “agentic AI era,” where AI systems increasingly handle software development, operations, finance, customer support, and internal workflows. Furthermore, the company clarified that the restructuring reflects a redesign of processes and operational roles rather than concerns related to productivity or immediate financial challenges.

Cloudflare also said the restructuring aims to help the organisation adapt to faster AI-assisted execution, automation, and accelerated product development cycles. According to The Wall Street Journal, the company rapidly expanded AI adoption internally in recent months, prompting major operational shifts across multiple departments.

The layoffs come despite strong financial performance from the company. For the first quarter, Cloudflare reported a 34% year-on-year increase in revenue, reaching $639.8 million. Meanwhile, adjusted earnings stood at 25 cents per share, exceeding Wall Street expectations. However, the company’s shares declined in extended trading after it issued second-quarter revenue guidance slightly below market forecasts. Cloudflare projected second-quarter revenue between $664 million and $665 million.

Prince described artificial intelligence as “a fundamental re-platforming of the Internet” and emphasized that the AI transition represents one of the biggest growth opportunities in the company’s history.

Cloudflare now joins a growing list of technology companies reshaping their workforce structures around artificial intelligence, automation, machine learning, and AI-powered software development. As enterprises increasingly integrate generative AI and intelligent automation into daily operations, many tech firms continue redesigning teams and workflows to align with the rapidly evolving AI economy.

Cloudflare’s workforce reduction signals the accelerating shift toward AI-driven business models across the global technology industry. While the company continues delivering strong financial growth, its restructuring highlights how artificial intelligence is transforming operational strategies, workforce planning, and the future of enterprise software development.

In an internal email sent to employees, the company stated, “…your role has been impacted as part of our transition from Bangalore to base locations.” Furthermore, it confirmed that affected employees will receive severance pay equivalent to two months of their salaries.

In response to queries, the company said, “This is part of a broader organisational restructuring where we are aligning teams closer to our core markets. We had to let go of the employees for whom relocation wasn’t possible. At the same time, some roles are simply no longer needed because the work is now handled by AI.” Notably, the 10% workforce reduction translates to approximately 35–40 employees across multiple verticals.

Meanwhile, Apna Mart has decided to base its product and technology teams in Gurugram. Currently, the company operates across 10 cities in Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, and West Bengal, where it maintains operational teams. The company said, “We have historically operated and executed from these cities, and this move is in line with that approach.”

Founded by Abhishek Singh and Chetan Garg, Apna Mart operates on a franchisee model and delivers groceries within 10 minutes in Tier-II and Tier-III cities. Additionally, it follows an omnichannel approach that allows customers to purchase groceries both in-store and online. At present, the company operates approximately 185–195 stores, positioning itself strongly in the evolving quick commerce India and online grocery delivery segments.

However, Apna Mart faces intense competition from established quick commerce players such as Blinkit, Instamart, and Zepto. Blinkit currently leads the market with 2,243 dark stores as of March, while Instamart operates 1,034 dark stores as of December 2025, and Zepto maintains around 1,050–1,100 stores as of March. These companies primarily rely on a dark store and delivery-only model.

In contrast, Apna Mart adopts an omnichannel model similar to Reliance JioMart, combining physical retail stores with online ordering. Moreover, the competitive landscape has intensified as e-commerce giants Amazon (through Now) and Flipkart (through Minutes) have entered the quick commerce segment and expanded aggressively over the past year.

From a financial perspective, Apna Mart reported a net loss of Rs 75.8 crore on revenue of Rs 190 crore for FY25, according to its filings with the Registrar of Companies. Nevertheless, the company claimed it achieved 2.5x growth in FY26 and closed the year with Rs 500 crore in revenue. However, it did not disclose its profitability figures, and it has not yet officially released its FY26 financial results.

Overall, Apna Mart’s decision to implement layoffs reflects a broader shift across the AI-driven startups, retail tech, and quick commerce sectors, where companies increasingly adopt automation while optimising operational costs and geographic strategy.

“Freshworks began Q1 with strong momentum, building on our 2025 successes and achieving our sixth straight quarter of exceeding expectations,” said Dennis Woodside, CEO and President of Freshworks adding that demand for its EX platform and AI Copilot offerings continued to drive expansion. This reflects the increasing adoption of AI-powered customer and employee experience solutions across enterprises.

However, the company reported a GAAP operating loss of $8.1 million in Q1 2026, although it narrowed from a loss of $10.4 million a year earlier. At the same time, the company reversed its position from Q4 2025, when it had recorded a GAAP operating profit of $39.7 million, highlighting ongoing margin pressures in the cloud software market.

Meanwhile, Freshworks announced plans to reduce its global workforce by approximately 11%, impacting around 500 employees, as part of a broader restructuring strategy. This move comes as global SaaS companies face increasing pressure on growth efficiency and profitability. The layoffs will affect operations across India and the United States, signaling a shift toward leaner operational models.

The company expects to incur one-time restructuring charges of about $8 million, with most of these costs likely to be recognised in the second quarter of 2026, said Tyler Sloat during the company’s Q1 earnings call on May 6. This restructuring aligns with broader tech industry cost optimisation trends.

In terms of adjusted performance, non-GAAP operating income stood at $41 million, down from $46.4 million in the previous year, while margins contracted to 17.9% from 23.6%. Sequentially, the figure remained largely flat compared with $41.6 million in Q4, although margins declined, indicating cautious profitability trends despite steady revenues.

Additionally, GAAP net loss per share came in at $0.02, compared with breakeven ($0.00) a year ago. In contrast, the company had reported a profit of $0.67 per share in Q4 2025, reflecting a sharp sequential drop. On a non-GAAP basis, earnings per share declined to $0.11 from $0.18 a year earlier and also fell from $0.14 in the previous quarter. Despite this, the company maintained profitability on an adjusted basis, even as per-share earnings softened.

Furthermore, GAAP refers to standardised accounting principles that companies must follow, whereas non-GAAP metrics exclude items such as stock-based compensation or one-time expenses to provide a clearer view of underlying operating performance—an important distinction for investors tracking earnings analysis and financial performance metrics.

On the cash flow front, Freshworks maintained steady performance, with operating cash flow rising to $62.4 million from $58 million a year ago. Adjusted free cash flow stood at $55.8 million, while the company ended the quarter with a strong cash position of $780.4 million in cash and equivalents. This reinforces its financial stability amid evolving market conditions.

Following the earnings announcement, Freshworks’ shares rose about 2% to trade at around $0.19 apiece. However, the stock remains down roughly 26% year-to-date, reflecting broader volatility in technology stocks and investor sentiment around growth-oriented companies.

Importantly, the company secured two of the largest deals in its history during the quarter, including its first contract exceeding $1 million in annual recurring revenue (ARR). This milestone highlights increasing traction in the enterprise segment and strengthens its position in the enterprise SaaS market.

Among key operating metrics, the number of customers contributing over $100,000 in ARR increased 29% year-on-year. Meanwhile, net dollar retention stood at 106%, slightly lower than 108% in Q4 2025, indicating stable but moderating customer expansion trends.

Looking ahead, Freshworks expects Q2 2026 revenue to range between $232 million and $235 million. Additionally, the company raised its full-year revenue guidance to between $958 million and $964 million, signaling continued confidence in achieving double-digit growth in the global SaaS landscape.

“As we grow Freshworks to a $1 billion ARR company and beyond, our EX business represents the primary and largest growth opportunity,” Woodside said during the company’s earnings call. This outlook underscores the company’s strategic focus on scaling its EX platform and expanding its enterprise footprint.

The company also highlighted strong adoption of its AI offerings. “In Q1, Freddy AI Copilot customer growth exceeded 80% year-on-year, while the attach rate in new deals above $30,000 ARR was over 65%. Within its EX business, customer penetration for AI crossed 20%, nearly doubling from a year ago, and about one-third of all new EX customers adopted Copilot,” Woodside said.

Freshworks’ Q1 2026 results reflect a balanced narrative of steady revenue growth, rising enterprise adoption, and expanding AI capabilities, alongside profitability pressures and workforce restructuring. As the company continues to invest in AI innovation, employee experience platforms, and enterprise software solutions, it remains well-positioned to capitalise on long-term growth opportunities while navigating near-term market challenges.

In the initial round, Meta will lay off approximately 10% of its global workforce, translating to nearly 8,000 employees, one of the sources confirmed. Furthermore, the company is planning additional layoffs in the second half of the year. However, executives have not yet finalized key details, including the timeline and scale of those cuts. Sources added that leadership may refine these plans depending on how artificial intelligence capabilities evolve in the coming months.

Notably, reports last month suggested that Meta could cut 20% or more of its global workforce. Despite these developments, the company has declined to comment on the timing or extent of the layoffs.

Meanwhile, CEO Mark Zuckerberg continues to invest heavily in artificial intelligence, allocating hundreds of billions of dollars to transform the company’s operational framework. This move aligns with a broader trend among major U.S. technology firms prioritizing AI-driven efficiency. For instance, Amazon has reduced around 30,000 corporate roles in recent months, representing nearly 10% of its white-collar workforce. Similarly, fintech firm Block cut nearly half of its staff in February. In both cases, executives directly linked layoffs to productivity gains enabled by artificial intelligence.

According to Layoffs.fyi, a platform tracking global tech job cuts, 73,212 employees have lost their jobs so far this year. In comparison, total layoffs reached 153,000 in 2024, indicating a sustained wave of workforce reductions across the technology sector.

Importantly, Meta’s upcoming layoffs mark its most significant workforce restructuring since late 2022 and early 2023, when it eliminated approximately 21,000 jobs during what it termed the “year of efficiency.” At that time, the company faced declining stock performance and struggled with post-pandemic demand corrections following overestimated COVID-era growth.

Currently, Meta operates from a stronger financial position. However, executives are actively redesigning the organization to reduce management layers and enhance efficiency through AI-assisted workflows. As part of this transformation, the company is focusing on leaner structures and automation-driven productivity.

From a financial perspective, Meta’s shares have risen 3.68% since the beginning of the year, although they remain below their record high from last summer. In the previous fiscal year, the company generated over $200 billion in revenue and reported a profit of $60 billion, despite substantial investments in AI. As of December 31, Meta employed nearly 79,000 people, according to its latest regulatory filing.

In addition, Meta has recently undertaken internal restructuring initiatives. It has reorganized teams within its Reality Labs division and reassigned engineers across the company to a newly formed “Applied AI” organization. This unit is focused on accelerating the development of advanced AI agents capable of writing code and executing complex tasks autonomously.

Moreover, one source indicated that the company will transfer some employees to Meta Small Business, a unit established last month, as part of the ongoing restructuring efforts.

The company described the layoffs as a strategic reallocation of resources rather than a reactive cost-cutting exercise. Over the past six months, Livspace has steadily deployed advanced AI agents across key business functions such as sales, design, operations, and marketing. As a result, automation has replaced several tasks that teams earlier handled manually, allowing the company to redesign workflows and reduce dependency on large operational teams.

Meanwhile, the restructuring comes at a time when Livspace continues to navigate a prolonged funding slowdown. The company has not raised external capital for nearly four years and has faced sustained pressure to demonstrate a clear and sustainable path to profitability. Consequently, the shift toward automation reflects a broader effort to improve efficiency while controlling long-term costs.

Previously, Livspace trimmed its workforce by about 2 percent in March 2023. Earlier, during the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic in May 2020, the company had laid off nearly 450 employees as demand across the housing and interiors sector slowed sharply.

Alongside the restructuring, Livspace also confirmed a major leadership change. Co-founder Saurabh Jain has stepped down after spending 11 years at the company, choosing to pursue personal interests beyond the business.

Founded in 2014, Livspace has raised more than USD 450 million from prominent investors, including KKR, Jungle Ventures, and Venturi Partners. In 2022, the company achieved unicorn status after raising USD 180 million in a funding round led by KKR.

For the financial year ending March 2025, Livspace reported revenue of Rs 1,460 crore while simultaneously reducing its losses by 42 percent. At present, the company continues to operate across India, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East, even as it reshapes its organisation to align with an increasingly AI-driven business model.

The company explained that it is streamlining operations, optimizing talent across various business units, and focusing resources on high-growth areas as part of its ongoing efforts.

“VerSe Innovation has been undergoing a strategic transformation to build a more agile, focused, and future-ready organisation,” a company spokesperson said.

“This strategic transformation is geared at accelerating investments in AI, streamlining operations, and aligning the company’s strategy and structure to its long-term priorities and growth,” the statement added.

The layoffs are part of VerSe’s efforts to automate manual processes, reduce operational costs, and improve structural efficiency as it targets profitability by the end of FY25.

VerSe Innovation’s updated financial report shows that the company generated an operating revenue of ₹1,029 crore in FY24, a decline from ₹1,104 crore in the previous year. It also reduced its net loss to ₹889 crore in FY24, down from ₹1,909.7 crore in FY23.

However, VerSe had earlier reported a different FY24 figure, stating ₹1,261 crore in operating revenue and an EBITDA loss of ₹710 crore.

Looking ahead, VerSe projects over 75% revenue growth in FY25—significantly outpacing the estimated 10–15% growth in India’s digital advertising market. This anticipated surge stems from several key initiatives.

Notably, the company is advancing AI-powered platforms such as NexVerse.ai, launching a subscription-based service called Dailyhunt Premium in partnership with Magzter, and expanding VerSe Collab, a platform designed to manage influencer campaigns.

In April 2022, VerSe Innovation raised $805 million in a funding round led by the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board, which valued the company at around $5 billion. So far, VerSe has secured over $2 billion across multiple funding rounds and has been preparing to launch an initial public offering (IPO) this year.

VerSe Innovation is actively restructuring its operations to improve profitability, while also sharpening its focus on high-growth segments like AI and positioning itself for future expansion. By reducing costs, streamlining talent, and investing in strategic initiatives, the company aims to strengthen its financial performance and ultimately sustain long-term growth.

The laid-off employees were mainly from the marketing and recruiting teams, according to the report.

“We are refocusing the company to ensure all roles align with our new direction to build personalized AI (artificial intelligence) products,” a Character.AI spokesperson told Reuters. 

“As a result, we have made a small reduction in our workforce,” the spokesperson said, without giving the numbers of the laid off employees. 

Earlier this month, the startup signed a deal with Alphabet’s Google, giving the tech giant a non-exclusive license to the startup’s large language model technology.

As part of this deal, Character.AI will receive additional funding from Google, although the startup did not disclose the amount in its blog post.

Previously, Character.AI raised $193 million in venture capital from investors, including Andreessen Horowitz. In November, Reuters reported that the startup was in talks to raise hundreds of millions more from Google.

The decision, outlined in a letter from CEO Alex Chriss, aims to “right-size” the company by implementing direct cuts and eliminating open roles throughout the year. Affected staff members are anticipated to receive notifications by the week’s end.

“We are doing this to right-size our business, allowing us to move with the speed needed to deliver for our customers and drive profitable growth,” Chriss wrote in the letter.

After the market closed, the company published the letter on its website. Paypal’s shares experienced a 0.13% decline by the end of the day. 

In November, CEO Chriss expressed his anticipation of boosting revenue beyond transaction-related volume and committed to making the fintech firm more efficient by lowering its cost base.

While the announcement contributed to a stock rally following third-quarter results, analysts have consistently concentrated on PayPal’s margins in recent quarters. 

The company’s low-margin business products have seen significant growth, but its branded products have experienced a slowdown, primarily due to heightened competition from rivals like Apple.

Investors are optimistic that Chriss, a former senior executive at Intuit, will revive PayPal’s stock, which declined almost 14% last year, missing out on a broader rebound in high-growth technology shares. 

Last week, the payments firm unveiled new artificial intelligence-driven products and a one-click checkout feature. 

In contrast, rival Block, under the leadership of Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, initiated job cuts this week as part of its previously revealed plans to reduce headcount and control costs, according to a source told Reuters.

The layoffs follow the termination of the $1.7 billion Amazon-iRobot deal due to regulatory challenges. As a result, iRobot’s shares experienced a 10% decline.

As iRobot trims its workforce, it foresees incurring restructuring charges ranging from $12 million to $13 million. These charges, covering severance and associated expenses, will be recorded primarily in the first two quarters of 2024. The majority of these restructuring costs are expected in the first quarter of 2024.

“We must rapidly align our operating model and cost structure to our future as a standalone company. Though decisions that impact our people are difficult, we must move forward with a more sustainable business model, and a renewed focus on profitability,” said Andrew Miller, Chairman of the iRobot Board. 

Glen Weinstein, iRobot’s Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer, is now the Interim CEO, and Miller assumes the role of Chairman of the Board. iRobot expects to report a full-year 2023 revenue of $891 million, marking a 25% decrease from the previous year.

As per the merger agreement, Amazon is obligated to pay iRobot a termination fee of $94 million.

Following the payment of financial advisor fees, which are around 20% of the termination fee, the company will promptly allocate $35 million of the termination fee to repay the term loan. The remaining portion of the termination fee will be reserved for future repayments of the term loan.

“We are disappointed with the Company’s 2023 performance – but our focus turns now to the future,” said Miller.