MW Block plans to lay off nearly half its staff in 'deliberate and bold' embrace of AI

By Emily Bary

'Intelligence tools have changed what it means to build and run a company,' CEO Jack Dorsey says

Jack Dorsey thinks other companies will follow Block with dramatic workforce cuts.

Block, the parent company of Square and the Cash App, is conducting a major reorganization in the age of artificial intelligence.

The payment-technology company plans to cut almost half of its workforce, it announced Thursday. The restructuring will bring Block's (XYZ) employee count below 6,000 versus more than 10,000 today.

'Intelligence tools have changed what it means to build and run a company," CEO Jack Dorsey said in a shareholder letter. "We're already seeing it internally. A significantly smaller team, using the tools we're building, can do more and do it better."

By "intelligence tools," the company is referring to AI and automation. CFO Amrita Ahuja said that Block has seen sizable productivity gains recently, not just among programmers but also within the broader company.

Within a year, Dorsey expects other companies to follow suit with "similar structural changes."

"I'd rather get there honestly and on our own terms than be forced into it reactively," he added.

Block's "deliberate and bold" decision to dramatically reduce its workforce comes "from a position of strength," according to Ahuja, as the company just exceeded expectations with various financial metrics and lifted its outlook.

The stock was up about 4% in Thursday's extended session.

In its fourth-quarter earnings report Thursday, Block reported earnings per share of 65 cents, down from 71 cents a year before but ahead of the FactSet consensus by a penny. Gross profit, which is seen by Wall Street as a reasonably clean barometer for Block's top-line performance, was up 24% from a year before to $2.87 billion. Analysts were looking for $2.74 billion.

Block now expects 18% growth in gross profit for the full year, above the 17% target it set at an investor day late last year.

That new outlook reflects a "recognition of our ability to continue to drive against our roadmap" with a "smaller, more nimble, flatter organizational structure," Ahuja said.

-Emily Bary

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February 26, 2026 16:13 ET (21:13 GMT)

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