Snapchat parent Snap Inc. is planning to lay off about 20% of its workforce — or more than 1,200 employees — amid a brutal stock slump, according to a report on Tuesday.
The social media app’s layoffs will start on Wednesday, the Verge reported. Snapchat currently employs more than 6,400 people, according to the outlet. Twenty percent of that figure would be 1,280 employees.
Separately, two senior advertising executives have exited the company. The executives Jeremi Gorman, chief business officer, and Peter Naylor, vice president of ad sales for the Americas, will join Netflix, the streaming major said.
The news comes as Snapchat’s stock has fallen more than 86% over the past year to close at $10.02 on Tuesday. Snap shares fell 4% in extended trading.
Investors have soured on the social media app as its revenue and user growth have slowed and it’s faced heightened competition from rivals like Instagram, TikTok and BeReal.
Snap did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Divisions that will be most affected by the layoffs include a team that helps developers build apps and games within Snapchat — as well as a team that works on hardware like the company’s augmented reality glasses and recently canceled drone, according to the Verge.
Other tech firms including LinkedIn, Coinbase and Netflix have had rounds of layoffs this summer as rising interest rates squeeze the sector. Big Tech companies like Apple, Microsoft, Meta and Google have slowed or frozen hiring.
Gorman will join Netflix as president of worldwide sales, while Naylor will be vice president of advertising sales starting September, Netflix said in a statement.
With Post wires
