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Forced to lay off employees? Explain it all away with AI...
What was really behind Jack Dorsey laying off nearly half of Block’s staff?
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A company that has focused its business on cryptocurrency may have other reasons than the miracle of AI to trim its staff. Estimates based on Block’s public financial filings peg its bitcoin holdings around 8,500 BTC. Bitcoin has lost nearly a quarter of its value since the beginning of the year, and the broader cryptocurrency market has shown similar lackluster performance. Before Dorsey’s announcement, Block’s stock had declined by some 35% since a peak in October.
The combination of a crypto winter and a weak stock price provides a less futuristic and more tangible rationale for Dorsey’s cuts. With the radical layoff announcement, he did achieve an immediate result: Block’s stock popped by 20%, growth it sustained in the ensuing days.
-- more --
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/mar/03/jack-dorsey-block-ai-worker-jobs
-- snip --
A company that has focused its business on cryptocurrency may have other reasons than the miracle of AI to trim its staff. Estimates based on Block’s public financial filings peg its bitcoin holdings around 8,500 BTC. Bitcoin has lost nearly a quarter of its value since the beginning of the year, and the broader cryptocurrency market has shown similar lackluster performance. Before Dorsey’s announcement, Block’s stock had declined by some 35% since a peak in October.
The combination of a crypto winter and a weak stock price provides a less futuristic and more tangible rationale for Dorsey’s cuts. With the radical layoff announcement, he did achieve an immediate result: Block’s stock popped by 20%, growth it sustained in the ensuing days.
-- more --
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/mar/03/jack-dorsey-block-ai-worker-jobs
This is not the only corporation doing this. It seems unlikely to me that AI will save any company that's floundering.