Block Inc., the company behind Square, Cash App and Afterpay, has quietly brought back a small number of employees who were laid off in late February as the firm shifts to rely more on artificial intelligence.
Several former employees posted on LinkedIn in March that they were offered roles back after initially being among roughly 4,000 workers cut in the restructuring. Design engineer Andrew Harvard said on March 3 that he rejoined after being told his layoff was a clerical error and that he accepted an offer to return. Technical lead Richard Hesse said on March 8 that he was the only member of his team not initially affected and that after two days persuading management of the need to restore staff for “infrastructure highly critical to our customers,” the company rehired some of those laid off. Creative strategy lead Chane Rennie said on March 12 he was asked to rejoin about a week after being laid off but did not give further details.
Cointelegraph reached out to Block for details on who was rehired but did not receive an immediate response.
At the time of the cuts, CEO Jack Dorsey acknowledged the company may have made mistakes in its selections and said Block built in flexibility to correct course. Dorsey said advances in AI tools compelled Block to restructure its roughly 6,000-person workforce, arguing AI “fundamentally changes what it means to build and run a company.” Some former employees pushed back against the notion that AI can replace workers at scale, and others suggested the reductions were aimed at reassuring investors after Block shares fell earlier in the year.
Block continues to list job openings on its careers site — about 27 positions at the time of reporting — mainly for manager or account executive roles; the postings do not specifically mention AI. The company also maintains Bitcoin and other crypto-related products through Square and Cash App.
The news comes amid broader industry moves: the Algorand Foundation said it cut about 25% of its staff, citing the crypto slump and macroeconomic uncertainty, and analytics firm Messari announced cuts as it repositions toward being an AI-first company.
Cointelegraph is committed to independent, transparent journalism. This article follows Cointelegraph’s Editorial Policy; readers are encouraged to verify information independently.
