Jack Dorsey’s Block slashes nearly half its staff in AI bet

[NEW YORK] Jack Dorsey’s Block is cutting 4,000 employees, reducing its workforce by nearly half as the financial technology firm places a bet on artificial intelligence (AI) changing the future of labour productivity.

Block has been restructuring its business model and staffing since 2024 as the company’s stock has lagged. At the same time, the company has invested heavily in AI tools to run more efficiently, including building its own tool called Goose.

The reduction in force, which was announced in a shareholder letter on Thursday (Feb 26), comes after rolling job eliminations that have often been tied to annual performance reviews.

“We are taking bold and decisive action here, but we are doing it from a position of strength,” Amrita Ahuja, chief financial officer, said. “We are doing it in a way that we believe positions us to move even faster for our customers.”

After the announcement, Block’s stock jumped as much as 22 per cent in extended trading.

The move by Block is the latest indication of the havoc that new AI tools are wreaking on the economy and financial markets.

In the shareholder letter, the company highlighted strong financial performance over 2025, including gross profit growth that more than doubled from the first quarter to the fourth quarter.

Dorsey, the company’s co-founder, touted how the company has reignited the growth of users of its peer-to-peer payments app Cash App, scaled its lending products and accelerated Square gross payment volume. Block reported gross profit of US$10.36 billion in 2025, up 17 per cent year-over-year.

Dorsey wrote in his letter that his staff learnt about the cuts on Thursday and that he believes many companies will ultimately have to make similar moves due to AI.

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“I don’t think we are early to this realisation,” he wrote. “I think most companies are late. Within the next year, I believe the majority of companies will reach the same conclusion and make similar structural changes. I’d rather get there honestly and on our own terms than be forced into it reactively.” BLOOMBERG