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A comprehensive list of 2025 tech layoffs

Eye Observer
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A comprehensive list of 2025 tech layoffs


The tech layoff wave is still kicking in 2025. Last year saw more than 150,000 job cuts across 549 companies, according to independent layoffs tracker Layoffs.fyi. So far this year, more than 22,000 workers have been the victim of reductions across the tech industry, with a staggering 16,084 cuts taking place in February alone.

We’re tracking layoffs in the tech industry in 2025 so you can see the trajectory of the cutbacks and understand the impact on innovation across all types of companies. As businesses continue to embrace AI and automation, this tracker serves as a reminder of the human impact of layoffs — and what could be at stake with increased innovation.

Below you’ll find a comprehensive list of all the known tech layoffs that have occurred in 2025, which will be updated regularly. If you have a tip on a layoff, contact us here. If you prefer to remain anonymous, you can contact us here.

December

Payoneer

Will let go of about 30 employees in Israel and a similar number of staff overseas, bringing the total reduction to roughly 6% of its global workforce.

VSCO

Laid off 24 employees as part of a restructuring to refocus on tools for professional photographers. In an internal memo seen by TechCrunch, CEO Eric Wittman said that consumer demand fell short and recent expansion efforts didn’t deliver as hoped.

Mobileye

Is reportedly cutting 200 employees, about 4% of its global workforce. With over 3,000 of its 4,300 employees based in Israel, most of the cuts will affect its local teams.

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Inside Inbound Health

Shut down on December 1, according to an audio recording obtained by Axios Pro. The hospital-at-home startup had raised more than $50 million.

November

Intel

The company continued with its stated goal of cutting a significant amount of its workforce this year, with 59 Bay Area jobs eliminated effective November 30, in a Employment Development Department filing caught by KRON4.

HP

Is reportedly set to cut 4,000 to 6,000 jobs worldwide by 2028 as it looks to streamline operations and leverage AI to speed up product development and boost efficiency.

Apple

Is cutting several sales positions handling accounts ranging from business and schools to government agencies, as it moves to streamline how it sells devices and services to businesses, schools, and government agencies, Bloomberg reports.

Monarch Tractor

Told employees it may lay off more than 100 workers or even shut down, according to an internal memo obtained by TechCrunch. This comes after weeks of staff cuts across the autonomous electric tractor startup’s California offices and its teams in India and Singapore.

Playtika

Announced plans to lay off about 20% of its workforce, 700 to 800 employees, next month, marking its fifth round of cuts since 2022, according to Calcalist. The Nasdaq-listed gaming company, valued at $1.5 billion, employs about 3,500 people.

Pipe

Has laid off about 200 employees, roughly half its workforce, per Fintech Business Weekly. The revenue-based small business lender, once valued at $2 billion, said the cuts are part of its push toward profitability and greater operational efficiency.

Synopsys

Plans to cut roughly 10% of its workforce and close several sites as part of a restructuring tied to its recent acquisition of Ansys, The Wall Street Journal reported. The layoffs, which are expected to affect about 2,000 employees, are scheduled to take place during fiscal 2026, which began November 1.

Deepwatch

Has laid off between 60 and 80 employees, citing artificial intelligence as one of the factors behind the decision, TechCrunch reported. The cybersecurity firm, which builds an AI-powered threat detection and response platform, employs roughly 250 people.

Axonius

Is reportedly cutting roughly 10% of its staff, notifying employees in early November that about 100 of its 900 workers will be laid off. The New York–based cybersecurity firm says the move aims to streamline operations.

MyBambu

Is set to permanently close its local operations, laying off all 141 employees in two waves, according to a filing with the Florida Department of Commerce. The Florida-headquartered fintech company’s first 100 employees were let go on October 31, with the remaining 41 slated for termination by December 31.

Hewlett-Packard

Is removing 52 positions at its San Jose campus, according to reporting from the San Francisco Chronicle. The layoffs, which began last month and will continue through November, affect employees across cloud development, engineering, and product management.

October

Amazon

After Reuters reported that the company was planning to eliminate up to 30,000 corporate jobs, amounting to roughly 10% of its 350,000 employees in their corporate departments, Amazon shared that it would pursue an “overall reduction in our corporate workforce of approximately 14,000 roles.” Since that news broke, Amazon has laid off 660 employees across multiple New York City offices, with more to come through the year.

Rivian

Is cutting 600 jobs, about 4% of its workforce, amid an EV market pullback, marking its third layoff this year. Details of the latest layoffs remain undisclosed, while earlier cuts in June and September affected 100 to 150 employees in its commercial and manufacturing teams.

Meta

Has laid off approximately 600 employees across its AI infrastructure units, including the Fundamental AI Research (FAIR) team and other product-related roles. However, top-tier AI hires in TBD Labs, managed by new chief AI officer Alexandr Wang, will not be affected.

Applied Materials

Plans to cut about 4% of its workforce, or roughly 1,400 jobs, to streamline operations amid tighter U.S. semiconductor export controls.

Handshake

Laid off around 100 employees in October, about 15% of its 650-person U.S. workforce. The layoffs affected various roles across its recruiting business vertical. The San Francisco-based startup is an online platform connecting college students and recent graduates with employers for early-career jobs.

Smartsheet

Has reportedly laid off over 120 employees amid a leadership transition following CEO Mark Mader’s retirement. The enterprise software company, which grew to more than 3,300 employees, was acquired for $8.4 billion by Blackstone and Vista Equity Partners earlier this year, taking it private.

Google

Has cut over 100 design roles in its cloud division, hitting U.S.-based teams especially hard, as the company shifts focus toward AI investments, per a CNBC report. Many affected employees have until early December to find a new role within Google, following additional layoffs across its Silicon Valley offices, including at least 50 permanent cuts in Sunnyvale.

Paycom

Is reportedly laying off over 500 employees due to AI and automation improving back-office efficiencies. The Oklahoma City-based HR and payroll software company will provide affected workers with severance packages, outplacement services, and access to internal job opportunities.

September

Just Eat

Will eliminate around 450 jobs as part of a cost and operations review, according to Reuters. The layoffs will span multiple functions and countries, including customer service and sales. Europe’s largest food delivery company said it is increasingly using automation and AI, shifting many manual service tasks to automated systems.

Fiverr

Plans to cut around 250 jobs, approximately 30% of its workforce, as part of a push to become a leaner, faster, and AI-focused company, according to The Wall Street Journal. The Tel Aviv-headquartered freelance services marketplace said the restructuring will reduce management layers and position it to pursue growth with an AI-native approach.

ZipRecruiter

Is closing its Tel Aviv development center, cutting about 80 jobs. Led by Yosi Taguri, the office specialized in software, data, and AI research, including algorithm development. The California-based recruitment firm, founded in 2010, is trimming costs amid a challenging labor market.

GupShup

Has laid off at least 100 employees, including junior developers, just months after cutting nearly 200 jobs. The San Francisco-based conversational AI company, which is preparing for an IPO within two years, raised $60 million in equity and debt in July.

xAI

Laid off about a third of its data annotation team, cutting roughly 500 jobs, according to Business Insider. The move comes as the company shifts focus from generalist AI tutors to specialist roles, after testing workers to assess their strengths. Employees were told they’ll be paid through the end of their contracts — or November 30 at the latest — but their system access was cut immediately, Business Insider reports.

Rivian

Has reportedly laid off about 200 workers, or 1.5% of its staff, as the company braces for the end of federal EV tax credits under President Trump’s policy changes. The $7,500 incentive for new electric cars expires this month, adding to pressure from cooling demand. Despite the cuts, Rivian says it’s moving ahead with plans for a lower-cost model.

Oracle

Is cutting another 101 jobs in Seattle and 254 in San Francisco, just weeks after a wave of layoffs in August. The company, which had about 3,900 local employees before the cuts, hasn’t explained the move and declined to comment.

Salesforce

Is trimming another 262 jobs at its San Francisco headquarters, according to a state filing, with layoffs set to take effect November 3. The move comes just weeks after CEO Marc Benioff touted AI’s potential to cut customer support roles and follows a smaller round of cuts in Seattle and Bellevue earlier this month.

August

Cisco

Will eliminate 221 positions across its Milpitas and San Francisco offices, including 157 in Santa Clara County and 64 in San Francisco, effective October 13, according to filings with California’s Employment Development Department reported by the San Francisco Chronicle. The cuts are part of the company’s broader workforce-reduction strategy.

Restaurant365

Laid off about 100 employees last month, around 9% of its workforce, after falling short of ambitious growth targets. The cuts affected staff across all departments. The company provides back-office software for restaurant chains.

Oracle

Is set to cut 101 jobs at its Santa Clara location, with notices issued on August 13 and terminations effective October 13. The company, which recently disclosed nearly 200 layoffs at its Pleasanton and Redwood City offices, is also planning to lay off 161 employees in Seattle, according to filings with the Washington state Employment Security Department.

F5

Is cutting 106 positions at its Seattle and Liberty Lake, Washington, offices, according to a state Employment Security Department filing. The layoffs, which affected senior engineers and managers, are part of a broader global workforce reduction, although the security and application delivery company has not disclosed the total number of employees affected.

Peloton

Will cut 6% of its workforce in its sixth layoff in just over a year. Peloton CEO Peter Stern said the cuts are needed to improve long-term business health.

Kaltura

Is cutting 10% of its workforce, or about 70 employees, as part of a cost-saving effort to reduce operating expenses by $8.5 million, marking its third round of layoffs since 2022. The corporate video software company plans to maintain and gradually grow its sales and marketing budgets, driven by a robust pipeline and growing adoption of its AI-powered offerings.

Yotpo

Is laying off about 200 employees, roughly 34% of its global workforce, as it shuts down its email and SMS marketing operations. The Israeli-founded unicorn is partnering with Attentive and Omnisend to continue supporting marketing services while investing in AI-powered tools like automated review summaries, smart sorting, and a new Loyalty Tiers system.

Windsurf

Laid off 30 employees and is now offering buyouts to the remaining 200. The AI coding startup recently acquired by Cognition has had a rocky stretch, including a near-acquisition by OpenAI and a reverse-acqui-hire by Google that saw key talent depart before Cognition stepped in. Despite initial promises to value Windsurf’s team, the deal now looks more focused on the startup’s intellectual property than its people.

Wondery

Is cutting 100 jobs, and its CEO, Jen Sargent, is departing. Amazon is reorganizing its audio operations, moving Wondery’s audio-only podcasts under Audible and placing video-focused shows into a new Creator Services division. Amazon acquired Wondery in 2020.

July

Atlassian

Has cut 150 roles in customer service and support, following enhancements to its platform and tools that have significantly reduced support needs. The decision came via a prerecorded message from CEO Mike Cannon-Brookes, just hours before co-founder Scott Farquhar urged Australia to embrace an “AI revolution” and move beyond “jobs of the past” in an Australian Press Club address. The Australian software firm was founded 2002.

Consensys

Is cutting about 7% of its workforce, or 47 employees, as part of a push toward profitability, Bloomberg reports. The decision follows the recent acquisition of a startup with around 30 staff, who will stay on with the company. Despite the cuts, the blockchain software company that operates the popular digital wallet MetaMask says it will continue hiring for select roles.

Zeen

Is shutting down operations, per a report by Business Insider. The social collaging platform aimed at creators was founded in 2019 and raised $9 million in funding. Its closure highlights the persistent challenges social media startups face in building user bases and achieving long-term growth.

Scale AI

Is laying off around 200 employees — roughly 14% of its workforce — and severing ties with 500 global contractors. The cuts come just weeks after Meta brought in the data-labeling startup’s CEO in a $14.3 billion deal.

Lenovo

Plans to cut more than 100 U.S. full-time jobs, about 3% of its workforce, including positions at its Morrisville, North Carolina, campus. As of February 2024, the PC maker employed around 5,100 workers in the U.S.

Intel

Is reportedly planning to lay off nearly 2,400 workers in Oregon, which is almost five times more than what was announced earlier this week. Last week, Intel announced that it will lay off more than 500 employees in Oregon, which is about 20% of its workforce, per Bloomberg.  

Indeed + Glassdoor

Plan to eliminate approximately 1,300 jobs combined as part of a larger restructuring effort to combine their operations and focus on AI. The layoff will mostly affect employees in the U.S., particularly in the R&D, HR, and sustainability teams, according to an internal memo by Hisayuki “Deko” Idekoba, the CEO of Recruit Holdings, which is the Japanese parent company of Indeed and Glassdoor.

Eigen Lab

Has laid off 29 employees as part of its reorganization, per a report by Blockworks. The Seattle-based research and engineering startup recently launched EigenCloud, a platform that provides blockchain-level trust guarantees for any Web 2.0 or web3 application. The reduction will affect 25% of the company’s workforce. Eigen Labs said it had raised $70 million in tokens from a16z Crypto in June.

Microsoft

Will cut 9,000 employees, which is less than 4% of its global workforce across teams, role types, and geographies. The reduction follows a series of layoffs earlier this year: It cut less than 1% of the headcount in January, more than 6,000 in May, and at least 300 in June.

ByteDance

Is laying off 65 employees in Bellevue, Washington, according to media reports. The parent company of TikTok arrived in Seattle in 2021 and has been expanding its presence there by growing its TikTok Shop online shopping division.

June

TomTom

Announced on June 30 that the company is cutting 300 jobs, or 10% of its workforce, as part of organizational restructuring within its sales and support divisions amid the AI shift. The startup is an Amsterdam-based location tech startup that provides navigation and mapping products.

Rivian

Has reduced its headcount by approximately 140 employees, accounting for roughly 1% of its total workforce. The recent layoffs mostly affected Rivian’s manufacturing team.

Bumble

Announced in an SEC filing that it will cut approximately 240 jobs, or 30% of its workforce, to enhance operational efficiency and allocate the resulting savings to the development of new products and technologies, according to a CNBC report. The layoff will help the online dating app save $40 million annually, per the report.

Klue

Has reportedly laid off 85 employees, which accounts for approximately 40% of its workforce. The Vancouver-based startup sells software products that use artificial intelligence for business intelligence. It helps sales professionals at tech companies gather information on competitors to improve their sales.

Google

Has downsized its smart TV division by 25% of its 300-member team to adjust its strategy, per reports. Funding for the smart TV division, including Google TV and Android TV, has been cut by 10%, but investment in AI projects has been raised.

Intel

Says that it plans to lay off 15% to 20% of workers in its Intel Foundry division starting in July. Intel Foundry designs, manufactures, and packages semiconductors for external clients. Intel’s total workforce was 108,900 people as of December 2024, according to the company’s annual regulatory filing. It also confirmed to TechCrunch that it plans to wind down its auto business.

Playtika

Announced that it is letting go of around 90 employees, with 40 in Israel and 50 in Poland. The most recent round of job cuts comes after the Israel-based gaming company laid off 50 employees a few weeks ago.

Airtime

Has let go of around 25 employees from the 58-person team, the company confirmed to TechCrunch. Evernote’s founder Phil Libin launched the video startup in 2020, offering Airtime Creator and Airtime Camera.

Microsoft

Is laying off more employees, just a few weeks after announcing a job cut of over 6,500 in May, which was around 3% of its global workforce. The most recent layoffs affected software engineers, product managers, technical program managers, marketers, and legal counsels.

May

Hims & Hers

Plans to downsize its workforce by letting go of 68 employees, approximately 4% of its total staff, per Reuters. The San Francisco telehealth platform said that its layoffs were unrelated to a U.S. ban on producing large quantities of the weight-loss drug Wegovy. The startup said it intends to keep on recruiting employees who fit in with its long-term expansion plans.

Amazon

Is reportedly laying off around 100 employees from its devices and services division, which encompasses various businesses like the Alexa voice assistant, Echo smart speakers, Ring video doorbells, and Zoox robotaxis. The company has reduced its workforce by approximately 27,000 since the start of 2022 to cut costs.

Microsoft

Will cut over 6,500 jobs, affecting 3% of its worldwide workforce. As of June, the Seattle-headquartered company had a total of 228,000 employees globally. It would be one of the company’s biggest layoffs since it cut 10,000 employees in 2023.

Chegg

Reportedly plans to let go of 248 employees, or about 22% of its workforce, to reduce expenses and improve efficiency, it said. The San Francisco-based edtech startup, which offers textbook rentals and tutoring services, has seen a drop in web traffic for months as students opt for AI tools instead of traditional edtech platforms.

Match

Is reducing its workforce by 13% as part of a reorganization that aims to reduce costs, shore up margins, and streamline its organizational structure.

CrowdStrike

Is laying off 5% of its global workforce, or around 500 people. The company said the layoffs were part of “a strategic plan (the ‘Plan’) to evolve its operations to yield greater efficiencies as the Company continues to scale its business with focus and discipline to meet its goal of $10 billion in ending [Annual Recurring Revenue]” in its 8-K filing.

General Fusion

Has cut roughly 25% of its current workforce. The Vancouver-based company, which is developing a technology to generate fusion energy, has raised $440 million from investors, including Jeff Bezos, Temasek, and BDC Capital.

Deep Instinct

Reduced its headcount by 20 employees, accounting for 10% of its total workforce. In April 2023, the Israeli cybersecurity startup had previously laid off a similar number of employees during a round of layoffs.

Beam

Has shut down its operations months after announcing major expansion plans, per Sifted. The British climate startup has let go of approximately 200 employees, according to a LinkedIn post by James Reynolds, the head of talent.

April

NetApp

Is reportedly eliminating 700 jobs, affecting 6% of its total workforce, as it reorganizes for its operational efficiency. The company, based in San Francisco, provides data storage, cloud services, and CloudOps solutions for businesses.

Electronic Arts

Is reportedly letting go of approximately 300 to 400 employees, including around 100 at Respawn Entertainment, to focus on its “long-term strategic priorities,” according to Bloomberg.

Expedia

Is laying off around 3% of its employees as part of its restructuring. The job cuts will mainly affect midlevel positions in the product and technology teams. The latest round of layoffs comes after the company let go of hundreds of employees from its marketing team globally in early March.

Cars24

Has reduced its workforce by about 200 employees in its product and technology divisions as part of a restructuring measure. The India-based e-commerce platform for pre-owned vehicles provides a range of services like buying and selling pre-owned cars, financing, insurance, driver-on-demand, and more. In 2023, the SoftBank-backed startup raised $450 million at a valuation of $3.3 billion.

Meta

Is letting go of over 100 employees in its Reality Labs division, which manages virtual reality and wearable technology, according to The Verge. The job cuts affect employees developing VR experiences for Meta’s Quest headsets and staff working on hardware operations to streamline similar work between the two teams.

Intel

Announced its plan to lay off more than 21,000 employees, or roughly 20% of its workforce, in April. The move comes ahead of Intel’s Q1 earnings call helmed by recently appointed CEO Lip-Bu Tan, who took over from longtime chief Pat Gelsinger last year.

GM

Is laying off 200 people at its Factory Zero in Detroit and Hamtramck facility in Michigan, which produces GM’s electric vehicles. The cuts come amid the EV slowdown and is not caused by tariffs, according to a report.

Zopper

Has reportedly let go of around 100 employees since the start of 2025. Earlier this week, about 50 employees from the tech and product teams were let go in the latest round of job cuts. The India-based insurtech startup has raised a total of $125 million to date.

Turo

Will reduce its workforce by 150 positions following its decision not to proceed with its IPO, per Bloomberg. The San Francisco-based car rental startup, which had about 1,000 staff in 2024, said the layoffs will bolster its long-term growth plans during economic uncertainty.

GupShup

Laid off roughly 200 employees to improve efficiency and profitability. It’s the startup’s second round of layoffs in five months, following the job cuts of around 300 employees in December. The conversational AI company, backed by Tiger Global and Fidelity, was last valued at $1.4 billion in 2021. The startup is based in San Francisco and operates in India.

Forto

Has reportedly eliminated 200 jobs, affecting around one-third of its employees. The German logistics startup reduced a significant number of sales staff.

Wicresoft

Will stop its operations in China, affecting around 2,000 employees. The move came after Microsoft decided to end outsourcing after-sales support to Wicresoft amid increasing trade tensions. Wicresoft, Microsoft’s first joint venture in China, was founded in 2022 and operates in the U.S., Europe, and Japan. It has over 10,000 employees.

Five9

Plans to cut 123 jobs, affecting about 4% of its workforce, according to a report by MarketWatch. The software company prioritizes key strategic areas like artificial intelligence for profitable growth.

Google

Has laid off hundreds of employees in its platforms and devices division, which covers Android, Pixel phones, the Chrome browser, and more, according to The Information.

Microsoft

Is contemplating additional layoffs that could happen by May, Business Insider reported, citing anonymous sources. The company is said to be discussing reducing the number of middle managers and non-coders in a bid to increase the ratio of programmers to product managers.

Automattic

The WordPress.com developer is laying off 16% of its workforce across departments. Before the layoffs, the company’s website showed it had 1,744 employees, so more than 270 staff may have been laid off.

Canva

Has let go of 10 to 12 technical writers approximately nine months after telling its employees to use generative AI tools wherever possible. The company, which had around 5,500 staff in 2024, was valued at $26 billion after a secondary stock sale in 2024.

March

Northvolt

Has laid off 2,800 employees, affecting 62% of its total staff. The layoffs come weeks after the embattled Swedish battery maker filed for bankruptcy.

Block

Let go of 931 employees, around 8% of its workforce, as part of a reorganization, according to an internal email seen by TechCrunch. Jack Dorsey, the co-founder and CEO of the fintech company, wrote in the email that the layoffs were not for financial reasons or to replace workers with AI.

Brightcove

Has laid off 198 employees, who make up about two-thirds of its U.S. workforce, per a media report. The layoff comes a month after the company was acquired by Bending Spoons, an Italian app developer, for $233 million. Brightcove had 600 employees worldwide, with 300 in the U.S., as of December 2023.

Acxiom

Has reportedly laid off 130 employees, or 3.5% of its total workforce of 3,700 people. Acxiom is owned by IPG, and the news comes just a day after IPG and Omnicom Group shareholders approved the companies’ potential merger.

Sequoia Capital

Plans to close its office in Washington, D.C., and let go of its policy team there by the end of March, TechCrunch has confirmed. Sequoia opened its Washington office five years ago to deepen its relationship with policymakers. Three full-time employees are expected to be affected, per Forbes.

Siemens

Announced plans to let go of approximately 5,600 jobs globally in its automation and electric-vehicle charging businesses as part of efforts to improve competitiveness.

HelloFresh

Is reportedly laying off 273 employees, closing its distribution center in Grand Prairie, Texas, and consolidating to another site in Irving to manage the volume in the region.

Otorio

Has cut 45 employees, more than half of its workforce, after being acquired by cybersecurity company Armis for $120 million in March.

ActiveFence

Will reportedly reduce 22 employees, representing 7% of its workforce. Most of those affected are based in Israel as the company undergoes a streamlining process. The New York- and Tel Aviv-headquartered cybersecurity firm has raised $100 million at a valuation of about $500 million in 2021.

D-ID

Will cut 22 jobs, affecting nearly a quarter of its total workforce, following the announcement of the AI startup’s strategic partnership with Microsoft.

NASA

Announced it will be shutting down several of its offices in accordance with Elon Musk’s DOGE, including its Office of Technology, Policy, and Strategy and the DEI branch in the Office of Diversity and Equal Opportunity.

Zonar Systems

Has reportedly laid off some staff, according to LinkedIn posts from ex-employees. The company has not confirmed the layoffs, and it is currently unknown how many workers were affected.

Wayfair

Announced plans to let go of 340 employees in its technology division as part of a new restructuring effort.

HPE

Will cut 2,500 employees, or 5% of its total staff, in response to its shares sliding 19% in the first fiscal quarter.

TikTok

Will cut up to 300 workers in Dublin, accounting for roughly 10% of the company’s workforce in Ireland. 

LiveRamp

Announced it will lay off 65 employees, affecting 5% of its total workforce.

Ola Electric

Is reportedly set to lay off over 1,000 employees and contractors in a cost-cutting effort. It’s the second round of cuts for the company in just five months.

Rec Room

Reduced its total headcount by 16% as the gaming startup shifts its focus to be “scrappier” and “more efficient.”

ANS Commerce

Was shut down just three years after it was acquired by Flipkart. It is currently unknown how many employees were affected.

February

HP

Will cut up to 2,000 jobs as part of its “Future Now” restructuring plan that hopes to save the company $300 million before the end of its fiscal year.

GrubHub

Announced 500 job cuts after it was sold to Wonder Group for $650 million. The number of cuts affected more than 20% of its previous workforce. 

Autodesk

Announced plans to lay off 1,350 employees, affecting 9% of its total workforce, in an attempt to reshape its GTM model. The company is also making reductions in its facilities, though it does not plan to close any offices.

Google

Is planning to cut employees in its People Operations and cloud organizations teams in a new reorganization effort. The company is offering a voluntary exit program to U.S.-based People Operations employees.

Nautilus

Reduced its headcount by 25 employees, accounting for 16% of its total workforce. The company is planning to release a commercial version of its proteome analysis platform in 2026.

eBay

Will reportedly cut a few dozen employees in Israel, potentially affecting 10% of its 250-person workforce in the country.

Starbucks

Cut 1,100 jobs in a reorganizing effort that affected its tech workers. The coffee chain will now outsource some tech work to third-party employees.

Commercetools

Laid off dozens of employees over the last few weeks, including around 10% of staff in one day, after failing to meet its sales growth targets. The “headless commerce” platform raised money at a $1.9 billion valuation just a few years ago.

Dayforce

Will cut roughly 5% of its current workforce in a new efficiency drive to increase profitability and growth.

Expedia

Laid off more employees in a new effort to cut costs, though the total number is unknown. Last year, the travel giant cut about 1,500 roles in its Product & Technology division.

Skybox Security

Has ceased operations and has laid off its employees after selling its business and technology to Israeli cybersecurity company Tufin. The cuts affect roughly 300 people. 

HerMD

Is shutting down its operations after shifting from a brick-and-mortar model to a fully virtual women’s healthcare provider. The startup, which raised $18 million in 2023, has not disclosed how many employees are affected, saying recent layoffs were tied to its former in-person business.

Zendesk

Cut 51 jobs in its San Francisco headquarters, according to state filings with the Employment Development Department. The SaaS startup previously reduced its headcount by 8% in 2023.

Vendease

Has cut 120 employees, affecting 44% of its total staff. It’s the Y Combinator-backed Nigerian startup’s second layoff round in just five months.

Logically

Reportedly laid off dozens of employees as part of a new cost-cutting effort that aims to ensure “long-term success” in the startup’s mission to curb misinformation online.

Blue Origin

Will lay off about 10% of its workforce, affecting more than 1,000 employees. According to an email to staff obtained by CNN, the cuts will largely have an impact on positions in engineering and program management. 

Redfin

Announced in an SEC filing that it will cut around 450 positions between February and July 2025, with a complete restructuring set to be completed in the fall, following its new partnership with Zillow.

Sophos

Is laying off 6% of its total workforce, the cybersecurity firm confirmed to TechCrunch. The cuts come less than two weeks after Sophos acquired Secureworks for $859 million.

Zepz

Will cut nearly 200 employees as it introduces redundancy measures and closes down its operations in Poland and Kenya.

Unity

Reportedly conducted another round of layoffs. It’s unknown how many employees were affected.

JustWorks

Cut nearly 200 employees, CEO Mike Seckler announced in a note to employees, citing “potential adverse events” like a recession or rising interest rates.

Bird

Cut 120 jobs, affecting roughly one-third of its total workforce, TechCrunch exclusively learned. The move comes just a year after the Dutch startup cut 90 employees following its rebrand.

Sprinklr

Laid off about 500 employees, affecting 15% of its workforce, citing poor business performance. The new cuts follow two earlier layoff rounds for the company that affected roughly 200 employees.

Sonos

Reportedly let go of approximately 200 employees, according to The Verge. The company previously cut 100 employees as part of a layoff round in August 2024. 

Workday

Laid off 1,750 employees, as originally reported by Bloomberg and confirmed independently by TechCrunch. The cuts affect roughly 8.5% of the enterprise HR platform’s total headcount.

Okta

Laid off 180 employees, the company confirmed to TechCrunch. The cuts come just over one year after the access and identity management giant let go of 400 workers.

Cruise

Is laying off 50% of its workforce, including CEO Marc Whitten and several other top executives, as it prepares to shut down operations. What remains of the autonomous vehicle company will move under General Motors.

Salesforce

Is reportedly eliminating more than 1,000 jobs. The cuts come as the giant is actively recruiting and hiring workers to sell new AI products.

January

Cushion

Has shut down operations, CEO Paul Kesserwani announced on LinkedIn. The fintech startup’s post-money valuation in 2022 was $82.4 million, according to PitchBook.

Placer.ai

Laid off 150 employees based in the U.S., affecting roughly 18% of its total workforce, in an effort to reach profitability.

Amazon

Laid off dozens of workers in its communications department in order to help the company “move faster, increase ownership, strengthen our culture, and bring teams closer to customers.”

Stripe

Is laying off 300 people, according to a leaked memo reported by Business Insider. However, according to the memo, the fintech giant is planning to grow its total headcount by 17%. 

Textio

Laid off 15 employees as the augmented writing startup undergoes a restructuring effort.

Pocket FM

Is cutting 75 employees in an effort to “ensure the long-term sustainability and success” of the company. The audio company last cut 200 writers in July 2024 months after partnering with ElevenLabs.

Aurora Solar

Is planning to cut 58 employees in response to an “ongoing macroeconomic challenges and continued uncertainty in the solar industry.”

Meta

Announced in an internal memo that it will cut 5% of its staff targeting “low performers” as the company prepares for “an intense year.” As of its latest quarterly report, Meta currently has more than 72,000 employees.

Wayfair

Will cut up to 730 jobs, affecting 3% of its total workforce, as it plans to exit operations in Germany and focus on physical retailers.

Pandion

Is shutting down its operations, affecting 63 employees. The delivery startup said employees will be paid through January 15 without severance.

Icon

Is laying off 114 employees as part of a team realignment, per a new WARN notice filing, focusing its efforts on a robotic printing system.

Altruist

Eliminated 37 jobs, affecting roughly 10% of its total workforce, even as the company pursues “aggressive” hiring.

Aqua Security

Is cutting dozens of employees across its global markets as part of a strategic reorganization to increase profitability.

SolarEdge Technologies

Plans to lay off 400 employees globally. It’s the company’s fourth layoff round since January 2024 as the solar industry as a whole faces a downturn.

Level

The fintech startup, founded in 2018, abruptly shut down earlier this year. Per an email from CEO Paul Aaron, the closure follows an unsuccessful attempt to find a buyer, though Employer.com has a new offer under consideration to acquire the company post-shutdown.

This list updates regularly.

On April 24, 2025, we corrected the number of layoffs that happened in March.



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How to watch John Cena’s final match for free

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How to watch John Cena’s final match for free


John Cena began his WWE retirement tour back in January, and it’s coming to an end this weekend when the wrestling legend headlines WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event. For the last fight of his career, Cena has been matched up with “The Ring General” Gunther on the night’s fight card, which also features matches between Cody Rhodes and Oba Femi, a tag team match featuring AJ Styles & Dragon Lee vs. Je’Von Evans & Leon Slater, and a women’s matchup between Bayley and Sol Ruca. This show starts at 8 p.m. ET on Saturday and will stream with a subscription to Peacock, or grab a 7-day trial of Peacock through Prime Video and tune in for free.

Here’s a look at how to watch John Cena’s final fight at WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event this weekend, including how to stream the entire thing for free.

How to watch WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event:

Image for the mini product module

Date: Dec. 13, 2025

Time: 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT

Streaming: Peacock

Where to watch WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event:

The WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event will air live on Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025 on Peacock, with fights starting at 8 p.m. ET. You can also tune in to the Saturday Night’s Main Event Countdown pre-show starting at 6 p.m. ET, and the post-show, which immediately follows the event on Peacock.

Who will be at WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event?

This weekend’s Saturday Night’s Main Event will be headlined by John Cena and Gunther. Also on the bill, you can catch matches between Cody Rhodes and Oba Femi, a tag team bout between AJ Styles & Dragon Lee vs. Je’Von Evans & Leon Slater, and a women’s matchup between Bayley and Sol Ruca.

How to watch the WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event:

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This weekend’s WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event streams exclusively on Peacock, but there is a way to get it for free, with Prime Video.

Right now, you can grab a free 7-day trial of Peacock Premium Plus if you sign up through Prime Video, so you can watch sports like the WWE, Premier League, and Sunday Night Football, along with original series like All Her Fault and The Traitors, and great Bravo and NBC shows, at no cost. You can cancel after the trial ends, or keep the subscription to Peacock Premium Plus for $16.99/month.

Try free at Prime Video

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While a regular Peacock subscription begins at $10.99 for a Premium Plan and goes up to $16.99 for the ad-free Premium Plus plan, you can get an ad-supported subscription for free if you’re a Walmart+ subscriber.

Walmart+ members actually get their choice between Paramount+ or Peacock included in their membership at no additional cost. A monthly subscription to Walmart+ costs $12.99, and an annual plan costs $98 and includes additional perks like five free months of Apple Music, discounts on Cinemark movie theater memberships, free shipping and delivery on Walmart purchases, discounts on gas, and much more.

Free at Walmart+

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Instacart+ subscribers are able to get an annual Peacock Premium plan (a $109.99 value) for free as part of their plan. After a free 14-day trial, Instacart+ plans cost $99/year, meaning you’ll save more on Peacock simply by subscribing to the delivery service, but you’ll get tons of extras, like free grocery and restaurant delivery, and a free subscription to the NY Times Cooking app, too.

Free at Instacart

Image for the small product module

Starting at $11 a month, a Peacock subscription is a great way to stream this weekend’s Saturday Night’s Main Event.

On top of this weekend’s wrestling, you’ll also get access to thousands of hours of shows and movies, including beloved sitcoms such as Parks and Recreation and The Office. For $17 monthly you can upgrade to an ad-free subscription which includes live access to your local NBC affiliate (not just during designated sports and events) and the ability to download select titles to watch offline.

$10.99/month at Peacock

WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event Fight Card:

  • John Cena vs. Gunther (John Cena’s final match)

  • Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes vs. NXT Champion Oba Femi

  • World Tag Team Champions AJ Styles & Dragon Lee vs. Je’Von Evans & TNA X Division Champion Leon Slater



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Google Weather for Wear OS breaks on Pixel Watch, Galaxy Watch

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Google Weather for Wear OS breaks on Pixel Watch, Galaxy Watch


Google Weather Wear OS 3

Back in September, Google stopped offering its Weather app for new Wear OS 6 devices. Google Weather has now stopped working on the original Pixel Watch and other devices due to a bug.

Opening Google Weather today results in a “Loading…” screen that then switches to “Can’t download weather data.” There’s a “Retry” button, but you’ll be stuck in a loop. This issue is also reflected on the Forecast, Sun, and UV Index Tiles: “Loading weather” and “Couldn’t retrieve your location.”

This is happening for all Google Weather users on every Wear OS device, including the original Pixel Watch and Samsung’s Galaxy Watch.

Officially, Google said in September that Weather will continue to work “if you had the app installed before you upgraded to Wear OS 6.” It’s just no longer available for new installs as Google wants you to use the default (OEM) weather app. (Pixel Weather is available on the Pixel Watch 2, 3, and 4.)

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This is most likely a bug and not a deprecation. According to one customer support interaction, Google is aware of the problem:

Hopefully, this just requires a server-side update. Besides installing a third-party app (AccuWeather is a major name) from the Play Store, asking Gemini for the weather is a workaround that doesn’t require you to download anything.


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Menorah to shine bright as Holyoke hosts annual Hanukkah fest

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Menorah to shine bright as Holyoke hosts annual Hanukkah fest



HOLYOKE ― As sundown ushers in Hanukkah on Sunday, Dec. 14, Holyoke City Hall will become a beacon of faith and festivity with Menorah lighting, music and treats for all ages.

The Hanukkah celebration was organized by Congregation Sons of Zion and Congregation Rodphey Sholom, the mayor’s office said in a statement.

The 10th annual public celebration will be held at Holyoke City Hall, 536 Dwight St., on Sunday, Dec. 14, at 5:30 p.m.

The celebration will include lighting the menorah, speakers, songs and snacks, the release said. Kids can play with dreidels, collect chocolate gelt and enjoy a reading corner. Hanukkah starts at sundown Dec. 14 and lasts eight nights, ending Dec. 22.



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Remembering Raul Malo, lead singer and guitarist for The Mavericks : NPR

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Remembering Raul Malo, lead singer and guitarist for The Mavericks : NPR




DAVID BIANCULLI, HOST:

This is FRESH AIR. I’m TV critic David Bianculli. Last weekend, Raul Malo and his veteran roots music group the Mavericks were scheduled to play at a tribute concert in their honor at the famed Ryman Auditorium in Nashville. The concert was held as planned. And among the other genre artists taking part were Steve Earle, Patty Griffin and Jim Lauderdale. But Raul Malo himself wasn’t there. Fighting cancer for the last few years, he watched from his hospital room last weekend as a special feed of the concert was streamed to his bedside. Raul Malo died Monday at age 60.

Raul Malo was born in 1965 the son of Cuban immigrants in Miami. In his early 20s, he became the guitarist and lead singer for the Mavericks, a genre-bending band that lived up to its rebellious name. They played punk clubs in Miami Beach, but with a mixture of music that embraced not only Latin rhythms but roots music, rock ‘n’ roll and country. The Mavericks recorded such popular hits as “Here Comes The Rain” and “All You Ever Do Is Bring Me Down.” Their most recent studio album was last year’s “Moon & Stars.” And their eclectic LPs over their four-decade career included an all-Spanish album and a tribute to Mötley Crüe.

In 1995, the Mavericks released “Music For All Occasions,” which included the hits “All You Ever Do Is Bring Me Down” and “Here Comes The Rain” and the opening track, “Foolish Heart.” Terry Gross spoke with Raul Malo when that album was released. She began by playing the opening song, “Foolish Heart.”

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, “FOOLISH HEART”)

THE MAVERICKS: (Singing) Foolish heart, you made me weep. Foolish heart, I’m yours to keep. You’re the one that’s still with me, foolish heart. Don’t set me free. There was a time…

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED NPR CONTENT)

TERRY GROSS: Raul Malo, welcome to FRESH AIR.

RAUL MALO: Thank you.

GROSS: Some people, I imagine, might think it’s incongruous for a Cuban American to be a country singer. Did it ever seem that way to you?

MALO: (Laughter) Sure. It still does sometimes. But, you know, I never gave it a second thought. I mean, it is what I love to do. And my parents, you know, certainly have supported me in doing so. And, you know, I grew up in a pretty musical household. So there was all kinds of music around always. I mean, we listened to everything from Hank Williams to Celia Cruz to Sam Cooke to Bobby Darin. It didn’t matter.

GROSS: Now, what was your neighborhood like when you were growing up?

MALO: It was a good neighborhood. You know, it’s a Cuban immigrant neighborhood and not very rough, but hardworking people. Blue collar people working every day for a living, you know, just trying to stay in the game.

GROSS: So what was the club scene like in Miami when you started playing in bands?

MALO: It was pretty wild, actually. You know, there wasn’t a lot of country music, to say the least. I think we were the only country band actually playing in these clubs. They were original music clubs, which was the good thing.

GROSS: What do you mean original music clubs?

MALO: Well, they were clubs that allowed the bands to come in and play their original music instead of…

GROSS: Oh.

MALO: You know, instead of bands coming in and doing, like, four sets of covers, you know, all night. So at the time, you know, we were allowed certain creative freedoms, you know, where you could basically go onstage and play whatever you wanted. And sometimes it led to interesting nights because we’d be right on after, you know, some punk rock or some heavy metal band. And here we were playing, you know, “I Fall To Pieces” or “Crazy Arms” or something, you know, just something that sounded old and country. And, you know, they didn’t quite know what to do with us. But they found themselves having a good time and digging it.

And that was the whole point, you know, that we were trying to do, that we’re still trying to do is to bring people in that, you know, would normally turn away from country music. You know, we want them to go, well, no, you know, this is cool. I want to go buy a Patsy Cline record. I want to go buy a Hank Williams record and that kind of thing, you know, and listen to the music. And, you know, it was an interesting time because it really allowed us to do whatever we wanted.

GROSS: Now, all the country people who you’ve mentioned, you know, Hank Williams, Patsy Cline, they’re among the early country performers when country was still not dressed up in a lot of studio accoutrements.

MALO: Right.

GROSS: Is that what you prefer?

MALO: Well, you know, that’s not only in country music. I mean, in pop music as well, you know, basically you have…

GROSS: True enough. Yeah.

MALO: We have people now that, you know, you don’t even have to be a good singer. You don’t have to be a musician. You don’t have to be anything, you know? You just got to be this little image with long hair and ripped up jeans and throw a flannel shirt, and we’ll make you sound good, kid. You know, don’t worry about it. And that’s the way it goes in all kinds of music. I mean, so, you know, there is something to be said about the old way of, like, just going in and actually having to sing. What a concept? And actually having to play your instruments, you know? That’s the problem I have with a lot of today’s music.

GROSS: What year did you actually move to Nashville?

MALO: I think I moved here – I’m trying to think. I’m going on three years that I’ve actually been living in Nashville.

GROSS: Did you go into culture shock at all? Was it a very different place than what you were used to?

MALO: Well, it certainly is a different place. I mean, you know, (laughter) Miami and Nashville, there’s a big difference. No. 1, you know, you don’t have the big Latin influence that you do in Miami. So that’s a big part of the change. But quite honestly, I’ve really enjoyed living here. And I call it home now, and I do like it a lot. And I do miss, you know, certain things from home, you know, the coffee, the people talking about Fidel, you know, the old men playing dominoes at the park and talking about how, you know, they’re going to do this and they’re going to do that to Fidel. But (laughter) so I do miss a lot of that. You know, but I’m gone all the time. And I’m on the road. So you don’t really have time to even think about it, you know, when you get home. You know, my parents just moved up to Nashville as well.

GROSS: Oh, really?

MALO: Yeah, so that’s a little bit of Miami moving up, you know, a bunch of Cubans moving up to Nashville. So I like that. You know, that’s fun now.

GROSS: Now, you’re talking about the different influences that you’ve drawn on and all the different kinds of music you listen to. On your new CD “Music For All Occasions,” you do a song that I know from my past (laughter). This is “Something Stupid” that Frank Sinatra – I mean, the song isn’t stupid. The song is called “Something Stupid.”

MALO: (Laughter).

GROSS: And Frank and Nancy Sinatra recorded it back in 1967. It rose to the top of the charts.

MALO: Right.

GROSS: You do a duet of this with Trisha Yearwood. What inspired you to record this?

MALO: Oh, you know, I don’t know. It’s just one of those songs that I grew up listening to. And we wanted to do a duet with Trisha. And, you know, we start going through all the different kinds of scenarios. What kind of song can we do? And we didn’t want to do the typical country music duet, you know? We didn’t want to do a George and Tammy Wynette song. We didn’t want to do a John Cash and June Carter song. So we found this one, and we gave it a shot. You know, we just thought, well, you know, we’ll see how it goes. We’ll give it, you know, worst comes to worst, we’ll have a laugh. And when we were done with it, we really liked it. And we kept it on the record.

GROSS: I like it, too. Before I play it, I just want to ask you one thing. Didn’t you always think when Frank Sinatra and his daughter, Nancy, sang this together, I mean, don’t the laws of God and man prohibit a father and daughter from singing a love duet like this?

(LAUGHTER)

MALO: Yeah, but it’s Frank Sinatra. The rules don’t apply to him.

GROSS: OK (laughter). So here…

MALO: He changes them, baby.

(LAUGHTER)

GROSS: So here’s the Mavericks’ recording of “Something Stupid” from their new album, “Music For All Occasions,” with my guest, singer Raul Malo.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, “SOMETHING STUPID”)

TRISHA YEARWOOD AND THE MAVERICKS: (Singing) I know I’d stand in line until you think you have the time to spend an evening with me. And if we go someplace to dance, I know that there’s a chance you won’t be leaving with me. And afterwards, we drop into a quiet little place and have a drink or two. And then I go and spoil it all by saying something stupid like I love you. I can see it in your eyes that you despise the same old lines you heard the night before. And though it’s just a line to you, for me, it’s true and never seemed so right before. I practice every day to find some clever lines to say to make the meaning come true. But then I think I’ll wait until the evening gets late and I’m alone with you. The time is right. Your perfume fills my head. The stars get red and, oh, the night’s so blue. And then I go and spoil it all by saying something stupid like I love you.

BIANCULLI: That’s Raul Malo and Trisha Yearwood from the Mavericks’ CD “Music For All Occasions.” Raul Malo spoke with Terry Gross in 1995. More after a break. This is FRESH AIR.

This is FRESH AIR. Let’s get back to Terry’s 1995 conversation with Raul Malo, guitarist and lead singer of The Mavericks. He died Monday at age 60.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED NPR CONTENT)

GROSS: I know you had an earlier album, I believe, independently released in which your songs were – some of them were more political, is that right?

MALO: Mm-hmm.

GROSS: Were you writing different kinds of songs, then?

MALO: No, I wasn’t writing different kinds of songs. Well, I guess, in a way, I was. I mean, you know, part of that whole – the whole – the feelings behind all those songs is that, you know, you have – you basically have your whole life to write your first record. So, these were songs that I had written, you know, in all my years there in Miami since I started writing songs, you know? And they were – they happened to touch, you know, political, social nerves, you know, and there’s still songs that I play live. You know, we still sing these songs live, and they’re important to us. But I realize now that at that point in time, you know, those songs were written from a real personal point of view. And to tell you the truth, I had a problem at the time wanting to put those songs on the record. I was outvoted by everybody else. I don’t regret that they’re on the record, and I don’t regret the record that was made. But I always felt that they were a little too personal. You know, the album was very much about the life and times of The Mavericks in Miami. And I always thought that, well, you know, the people around us know what these songs are about. But, you know, the rest of the world or the country won’t know unless we go out and explain it to them, and then, you know, we go out and play. And it’s that whole scenario. But that’s – you know, that’s my take on it, you know?

GROSS: Can I ask you for an example of a lyric that was very personal?

MALO: Sure. You know, in “Hell To Paradise,” the song about my aunt leaving Cuba and coming over here was inspired by her, but anybody who’s been in Miami knows somebody who’s been through this because we all came over from somewhere. And the funny thing was, when we were touring this song – this album, I remember going through all parts of the country and playing the song and explaining it. There’s a little part on the show where I explained the song, and I remember having all kinds of people, all walks of life, coming up to me after and going, wow, you know, I remember – older generations, I remember, you know, seeing the Statue of Liberty when I came over from Poland or from Czechoslovakia or from other parts of Europe, you know? And so it touched a lot of people’s nerves, you know, in that it not only dealt with the Cuban immigrants, but I think we’re all immigrants in this country, and we all came over from somewhere. So it was neat that it affected other people. And one of the lyrics is this 90-mile trip has taken 30 years to make. They tried to keep forever what was never theirs to take. I cursed and scratched the devil’s hand as he stood in front of me. One last drag from his big cigar, and he finally set me free. That’s the last verse on the song “From Hell To Paradise.”

BIANCULLI: Raul Malo speaking to Terry Gross in 1995. The guitarist and lead singer of The Mavericks died this week. He was 60 years old. Coming up, film critic Justin Chang reviews the newest film in the “Knives Out” murder mystery series. This is FRESH AIR.

Copyright © 2025 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information.

Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript text may be revised to correct errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org may be edited after its original broadcast or publication. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.



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Trump’s AI executive order promises ‘one rulebook.’ Startups may get legal limbo instead.

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Trump’s AI executive order promises ‘one rulebook.’ Startups may get legal limbo instead.


President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday evening that directs federal agencies to take aim at state AI laws, arguing startups need relief from a “patchwork” of rules. But legal experts and startups say the order could prolong uncertainty, sparking court battles that leave young companies navigating shifting state requirements while waiting to see if Congress can agree on a single national framework. 

The order, titled “Ensuring a National Policy Framework for Artificial Intelligence,” directs the Department of Justice to set up a task force within 30 days to challenge certain state laws on the grounds that AI is interstate commerce and should be regulated federally. It gives the Commerce Department 90 days to compile a list of “onerous” state AI laws, an assessment that could affect states’ eligibility for federal funds, including broadband grants.

It also asks the Federal Trade Commission and Federal Communications Commission to explore federal standards that could preempt state rules and instructs the administration to work with Congress on a uniform AI law. 

The order lands amid a broader push to rein in state-by-state AI rules after efforts in Congress to pause state regulation stalled. Lawmakers in both parties have argued that without a federal standard, blocking states from acting could leave consumers exposed and companies largely unchecked.

“This David Sacks-led executive order is a gift for Silicon Valley oligarchs who are using their influence in Washington to shield themselves and their companies from accountability,” said Michael Kleinman, Head of U.S. Policy at the Future of Life Institute, which focuses on reducing extreme risks from transformative technologies, in a statement. 

Sacks, Trump’s AI and crypto policy czar, has been a leading voice behind the administration’s AI preemption push.

Even supporters of a national framework concede the order doesn’t create one. With state laws still enforceable unless courts block them or states pause enforcement, startups could face an extended transition period.

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Sean Fitzpatrick, CEO of LexisNexis North America, U.K., and Ireland, tells TechCrunch that states will defend their consumer protection authority in court, with cases likely escalating to the Supreme Court. 

While supporters argue the order could reduce certainty by centralizing the fight over AI regulation in Washington, critics say the legal battles will create immediate headwinds for startups navigating conflicting state and federal demands. 

“Because startups are prioritizing innovation, they typically do not have…robust regulatory governance programs until they reach a scale that requires a program,” Hart Brown, principal author of Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt’s Task Force on AI and Emerging Technology recommendations, told TechCrunch. “These programs can be expensive and time-consuming to meet a very dynamic regulatory environment.”

Arul Nigam, co-founder at Circuit Breaker Labs, a startup that performs red-teaming for conversational and mental health AI chatbots, echoed those concerns.

“There’s uncertainty in terms of do [AI companion and chatbot companies] have to self-regulate?” Nigam told TechCrunch, noting the patchwork of state AI laws does hurt smaller startups in his field. “Are there open-source standards they should adhere to? Should they continue building?”

He added that he is hopeful that Congress could move more quickly now to pass a better federal framework. 

Andrew Gamino-Cheong, CTO and co-founder of AI governance company Trustible, told TechCrunch the EO will backfire on AI innovation and pro-AI goals: “Big Tech and the big AI startups have the funds to hire lawyers to help them figure out what to do, or they can simply hedge their bets. The uncertainty does hurt startups the most, especially those that can’t get billions of funding almost at will,” he said.

He added that legal ambiguity makes it harder to sell to risk-sensitive customers like legal teams, financial firms, and healthcare organizations, increasing sales cycles, system work, and insurance costs. “Even the perception that AI is unregulated will reduce trust in AI,” which is already low and threatens adoption, Gamino-Cheong said.

Gary Kibel, a partner at Davis + Gilbert, said businesses would welcome a single national standard, but “an executive order is not necessarily the right vehicle to override laws that states have duly enacted.” He warned that the current uncertainty leaves open two extremes: highly restrictive rules or no action at all, either creating a “wild west” that favors big tech’s ability to absorb risk and wait things out.

Morgan Reed, president of The App Association, meanwhile, urged Congress to quickly enact a “comprehensive, targeted, and risk-based national AI framework. We can’t have a patchwork of state AI laws, and a lengthy court fight over the constitutionality of an Executive Order isn’t any better.”



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Reddit sues Australia over underage social media ban

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Reddit sues Australia over underage social media ban


Reddit has filed a lawsuit in Australia’s High Court aiming to overturn the country’s under-16 social media ban, Reuters reported. The forum platform called the law contrary to Australia’s constitution as it intrudes on free political discourse. It also argued that Reddit shouldn’t have been included in the ban since it isn’t a social media site, based on the law’s definition. The action is likely to set in motion a protracted legal battle, given Reddit’s resources and its popularity in Australia

Australia’s minimum age social media ban, the first of its kind in the world, went into effect on December 10. The ten platforms affected, including Reddit, must bar underage users or face a fine of up to A$49.5 million ($33 million). Platforms are using a variety of means to determine age, including age inference based on activity and selfies.

However Reddit argued that the law comes with some “serious privacy and political expression issues” for users. “Australian citizens under the age of 16 will, within years if not months, become electors. The choices to be made by those citizens will be informed by political communication in which they engage prior to the age of 18,” it wrote in the filing.

The government disagreed, noting that Reddit filed the lawsuit to protect is profits, not children’s right to free expression. “It is action we saw time and time again by Big Tobacco against tobacco control and we are seeing it now by some social media or big tech giants,” said Health Minister Mark Butler.

With a market capitalization of $44 billion, Reddit certainly has the means to sustain a long fight. It would be motivated to do so as well, given that Australia is its fourth-largest market after Canada, the UK and the United States.



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Samsung’s Galaxy Z TriFold already sold out in South Korea ahead of US launch

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Samsung’s Galaxy Z TriFold already sold out in South Korea ahead of US launch



Samsung’s long-awaited Galaxy Z TriFold will hit store shelves in the US early next year, but if its Korean launch cycle is any sign of things to come, don’t expect the device to stay in stock for very long.

The Galaxy Z TriFold launched in South Korea this morning, and according to SammyGuru, Samsung has a big hit on its hands. In addition to online pre-orders, the company also launched in 20 retail locations across the country, drawing surprisingly large crowds as fans waited to get their hands on this device. Following less than a full day of availability, the TriFold is already sold out in both physical locations and online, all despite its starting price of around $2,500 for the standard 512GB model.

Obviously, selling out of something doesn’t necessarily mean high demand — you can sell out pretty quickly if you only manufacturer a couple hundred units, and we won’t know raw sales data on the TriFold for quite some time. That’s not to suggest this launch is anything less than impressive, though. While the TriFold is obviously a first-gen product from Samsung, it’s pulling from more than half a decade of foldable development, and feels a little less risky than say, buying the first-gen Galaxy Fold back in 2019. Considering its relatively high price point, though, selling out in minutes still feels pretty impressive.

Samsung has apparently shared restock sign-ups with its Korean audience ahead of the next round of units, though it’s unclear when those might actually land on store shelves. Meanwhile, in the US, we’re looking at an early 2026 launch, presumably timed with the upcoming Galaxy S26 lineup. While it’s impossible to know if the same level of demand will pop up in its North American debut, you might want to start counting your pennies now — something tells me those pre-orders are going to sell at a similar pace.

More on Samsung:


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Boston man accused of sex trafficking a child

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Boston man accused of sex trafficking a child



A Boston man has been indicted on federal charges accusing him of sex trafficking multiple victims — including a 17-year-old — between Massachusetts and New Hampshire, prosecutors announced Thursday.

A federal grand jury charged Orland Reyes, also known as “Snow,” 33, with seven counts, including attempted sex trafficking of a child, transportation of a minor with intent to engage in prostitution, coercion and enticement of a minor and other trafficking offenses.

According to the U.S. attorney’s office, Reyes was stopped by police in Puerto Rico on Aug. 20 while driving alone and was found to have multiple outstanding warrants. Investigators searched his three cellphones and found evidence outlining his trafficking operation.

Prosecutors say the trafficking began as early as June 2023 and involved three victims. Reyes is accused of coercing women in New Hampshire to travel to Massachusetts, where officials say he directed them to engage in sex work. One of the victims was 17 at the time, according to the indictment.

In one instance, prosecutors say Reyes urged a woman to take Percocet “to help her feel better” about being forced to engage in sex work. According to prosecutors, the woman later became addicted to drugs as a result.

Reyes also took an 18-year-old woman and her infant to his Boston apartment; when she refused to engage in prostitution, he kicked the woman and her child out of the home, prosecutors say.

Several of the charges involving the minor carry mandatory minimum sentences of 10 years in prison and a maximum of life. Other charges related to adult victims carry sentences of up to 20 years in prison.

Reyes made his initial court appearance in Massachusetts on Dec. 9, with a hearing set for Dec. 18 in federal court in Worcester.



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World launches its ‘super app,’ including crypto pay and encrypted chat features

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World launches its ‘super app,’ including crypto pay and encrypted chat features


World, the biometric ID verification project co-founded by Sam Altman, released the newest version of its app today, debuting several new features, including an encrypted chat integration and an expanded, Venmo-like capability for sending and requesting crypto. 

World was created by the startup Tools for Humanity in 2019, and originally launched its app in 2023. The company says that, in a world roiled by AI-generated digital fakery, it hopes to create digital “proof of human” tools that can help separate the humans from the bots.

During a small gathering at World’s headquarters in San Francisco on Thursday, Altman and World’s co-founder and CEO, Alex Blania, briefly introduced the new version of the app (which developers have termed a “super app”) before the product team took over to explain the new features. During his remarks, Altman said that the concept for World grew out of conversations he and Blania had had about the need to create a new kind of economic model. That model, based around web3 principles, is what World has been trying to accomplish through its verification network. “It’s really hard to both identify unique people and do that in a privacy-preserving way,” said Altman.

World Chat, the app’s new messenger, seems designed to do just that. It uses end-to-end encryption to keep users’ conversations safe (this encryption is described as being equivalent to Signal, the privacy-focused messenger), and also leverages color-coded speech bubbles to alert users to whether the person they’re talking to has been verified by World’s system or not, the company said. The idea is to incentivize verification, giving people the power to know whether the person they’re talking to is who they say they are. Chat was originally launched in beta in March.

The other big feature reveal on Thursday was an expanded digital payment system that allows app users to send and receive cryptocurrency. World app has functioned as a digital wallet for some time, but the newest version of the app includes broader capabilities. Using virtual bank accounts, users can also receive paychecks directly into World App and make deposits from their bank accounts, both of which can then be converted into crypto. You don’t have be verified by World’s authentication system to use these features.

Tiago Sada, World’s chief product officer, told TechCrunch that part of the reason chat was added was to create a more interactive experience for users. “What we kept hearing from people is that they wanted a more social World app,” Sada said. World Chat is designed to fill that need, creating what Sada says is a secure way to communicate. “It took a lot of work to make this feature-rich messenger that is similar to a WhatsApp or a Telegram, but with encryption and security of something that is a lot closer to Signal,” Sada said.

World (which was originally called Worldcoin) deploys a unique authentication process: interested humans get their eyes scanned at one of the company’s offices, where the Orb—a large verification device—converts the person’s iris into a unique and encrypted digital code. That code, the verified World ID, can then be used by the person to interact with World’s ecosystem of services, which are available through its app.

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The addition of more social-friendly features is clearly meant to drive broader adoption of the app, which makes sense since scaling verification is the company’s main challenge. Altman has said that he would like the project to scan a billion people’s eyes, but Tools for Humanity claims to have scanned less than 20 million people.  

Since standing in long lines at a corporate office to have your eyeballs scanned by a giant metallic ball may seem slightly less than enticing to some users, the company has already sought to make its verification process less cumbersome. In April, Tools for Humanity announced its Orb Minis—hand-held, phone-like devices—that allow users to scan their own eyes from the comfort of their homes. Blania previously told TechCrunch that, eventually, the company would like to turn the Orb Minis into a mobile point-of-sale device or sell its ID sensor tech to device manufacturers. If the company takes such steps, it would drop the barrier to verification significantly, potentially inspiring much more widespread adoption.



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