- Uber has laid off 23% of its workforce from its people division to streamline operations and simplify team structure.
- A spokesperson said that the layoffs represented less than 1% of the company’s global workforce.
- Uber has denied that the job cuts are linked to AI.
Uber has laid off 23% of its workforce from its people division as the company aims to streamline operations under new president Jill Hazelbaker.
The division includes human resources, workplace facilities, recruitment and culture.
The layoffs are part of Jill Hazelbaker's move to simplify team structure, as per Bloomberg.
Many senior roles are also part of the jobs cuts to the People and Places division.
The layoffs represent less than 1% of Uber's 34,000 employees globally, a company spokesperson said.
Uber has about 10 million drivers, the majority of whom are classified separately as independent contractors.
In a memo, CEO Dara Khosrowshahi stated that the “changes are necessary to maximize the effectiveness of the People team and the enormous potential ahead of us,” CNBC reported.
In another move, HR employees who had earlier been approved to work remotely are being asked to return to the office to adhere to a three-day-a-week office mandate that came into effect last June.
The changes come three weeks after Hazelbaker was promoted to the expanded role of president and chief corporate affairs officer.
A long-time executive who oversaw policy, marketing and communications, Hazelbaker told the affected teams in a memo on Wednesday that sections of Uber “have become too complex and fragmented” and teams are “operating too far from the businesses and partners they support.”
Is AI Linked To The Uber Job Cuts?
A spokesperson for the ride-share company said that the layoffs were not connected to artificial intelligence. Uber revealed last month that it would slow hiring due to internal use of AI.
However, the company's tech chief recently said that the company exceeded its AI budget for 2026 within four months, as per The Information.
Uber has now placed a monthly $1,500 cap per employee and per agentic coding tool. It launched a digital dashboard to track how much money each worker spends on AI per money, with special permission required to cross the $1,500 threshold.
However, the company is cutting jobs in a more targeted manner to cut down costs, Bloomberg reported, differing from technology giants who are citing AI investment as a reason for mass layoffs. Uber is still hiring for over 800 roles, including those linked to commercialising robotaxis.
The company had earlier laid off employees in the recruiting division in 2023. The cuts also targeted Uber's online grocery subsidiary, Cornershop.
