Block shares jumped greater than 20% in premarket buying and selling after CEO Jack Dorsey instructed staff the corporate will minimize greater than 4,000 roles and reorganize round an “AI-era” working mannequin.
The discount takes Block from greater than 10,000 staff to simply below 6,000 (“practically half,” in Dorsey’s wording), whereas the corporate’s 8-Ok describes a “Workforce Plan” that may cut back headcount by greater than 40%.
Dorsey pitches “AI-era” reset as traders weigh price cuts and progress targets
Block reported 10,205 full-time staff worldwide as of Dec. 31, 2025, in its annual submitting. The corporate expects $450 million to $500 million in costs tied to the plan, with a lot of the costs recorded within the first quarter of fiscal 2026 and the plan considerably full by the top of the second quarter.
Buyers additionally responded to what Block paired with the cuts: a forward-looking framework that requires $12.2 billion in gross revenue in 2026, up 18% 12 months over 12 months, and $3.2 billion in adjusted working earnings, a 26% margin.
That very same letter places 2025 gross revenue at $10.36 billion, up 17% 12 months over 12 months, and fourth-quarter gross revenue at $2.87 billion, up 24%, with Money App at $1.83 billion and Sq. at $993 million. In buying and selling, Block closed at $54.53, traded close to $69 after hours, and gained greater than 20% in premarket motion.
Dorsey’s inside message (shared publicly on X) tried to set a distinct tone for the way the corporate executes the discount. He wrote that the method could really feel “awkward and human” somewhat than “environment friendly and chilly,” and he stated the corporate would maintain channels open so coworkers can say goodbye.
I will even be internet hosting a reside video session to thank everybody at 3:35pm pacific. I do know doing it this manner may really feel awkward. I would somewhat it really feel awkward and human than environment friendly and chilly.
To these of you leaving…i’m grateful for you, and that i’m sorry to place you thru this.
The identical memo laid out severance phrases that embody 20 weeks of pay plus one further week for annually of tenure, continued fairness vesting via the top of Could, six months of well being care, permission to maintain firm gadgets, and $5,000 in transition assist, with variations outdoors the U.S.
| Merchandise | Metric | Supply |
|---|---|---|
| Headcount baseline | 10,205 full-time staff (Dec. 31, 2025) | 10-Ok |
| Workforce plan scale | 10,000+ to simply below 6,000 (“practically half”); “greater than 40%” in submitting | 8-Ok |
| Estimated costs, timing | $450M–$500M, largely Q1 FY2026; considerably full by finish of Q2 FY2026 | 8-Ok |
| 2026 targets | $12.2B gross revenue; $3.2B adjusted working earnings (26% margin) | Shareholder letter |
| Severance phrases (headline) | 20 weeks + 1 week per 12 months; fairness via finish of Could; 6 months well being protection; $5,000 assist | Newsweek |
The submitting’s cost vary additionally gives a fast examine of the size of the restructuring past severance.
Dividing $450 million to $500 million by roughly 4,000 impacted roles yields about $112,000 to $125,000 per position, a mixed determine that may embody money prices, advantages, and different objects mirrored in restructuring accounting.
What the restructuring alerts about Block’s price self-discipline and AI pivot
Block can also be asking the market to take its “intelligence-native” framing as an execution plan, not a theme. In its shareholder letter, the corporate described “intelligence” as a part of the way it decides, manages threat, builds merchandise, and serves prospects, and it pointed to “proactive intelligence” efforts and Money App testing that features Moneybot.
The wager embedded within the inventory transfer is {that a} smaller workforce can keep product velocity and controls whereas the price construction resets towards the corporate’s 2026 margin objective, with the following one to 2 quarters serving as the primary check window as costs land and groups reorganize.
The layoff framing additionally lands in a labor-market dataset the place corporations more and more cite AI alongside restructuring. Challenger, Grey & Christmas reported 108,435 U.S. job cuts in January 2026, up 118% from a 12 months earlier, and stated AI was cited for 7,624 cuts, about 7% of the month’s whole, per its January 2026 report.
The agency additionally tallied 54,836 AI-cited job minimize plans in 2025 and wrote that markets seem to reward corporations that point out AI.
A counterpoint has emerged that some corporations could lean on AI branding whereas chopping for broader causes.
For crypto-oriented traders, Block’s fairness narrative nonetheless carries Bitcoin-linked swing elements even when the catalyst is headcount.
The corporate stated it continues to ship Proto bitcoin mining models, and it reported that fourth-quarter 2025 internet earnings included a $234 million destructive influence from bitcoin remeasurement, in contrast with a $252 million profit within the year-ago quarter.
Block additionally disclosed a fourth-quarter repurchase of 11.9 million shares for $790 million, leaving $5.3 billion in approved repurchases.