Twilio Lays Off 1,500 Workers As Tech Cuts Continue

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — San Francisco-based cloud platform Twilio announced plans Monday to lay off 17 percent of its staff.

CEO Jeff Lawson cited restructuring and profit prioritization as the reason for the cuts.

“We have to spend less, streamline, and become more efficient,” he said in a message to employees filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, adding the company would be split into two units, one for communications and another for data and applications.

The reduction, which, according to CNBC, totaled about 1,500 jobs, followed September cuts that saw 11 percent of employees laid off in the name of streamlining the company.

“When we look at these two business units on their own, it’s clear that we’ve gotten too big, especially in Communications,” Lawson said Monday.

Some Twilio offices will also close in the coming months as the company shifts to remote work.

The news comes after significant layoffs last week at Dell, Zoom and eBay, as well as cuts in recent months across the tech sector by companies including Amazon, Google, Microsoft, Twitter and Meta.