Uber Technologies has announced the layoff of 3,300 employees, representing roughly 10% of its workforce, in what stands as its largest staff reduction since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The move comes as the company undergoes restructuring to sharpen its focus on autonomous driving.
In a letter to employees on Wednesday, CEO Dara Khosrowshahi explained that the cuts are part of a wider initiative to reduce layers of management and “simplify team structures” as the company gears up to “build the autonomous future” while also “investing more in drivers, couriers, and commercial partners.”
The company will also halve the number of “superteams,” where managers oversee only one or two direct reports, according to the memo. Khosrowshahi emphasized: “A leaner organization will bring clearer ownership, faster decisions, and more time spent on work rather than coordination.”
Additionally, the Uber CEO called for employees to return to the office, stating that “only about 1% of staff will work remotely moving forward.”
The latest job cuts come just weeks after Uber trimmed 10% of its customer support roles due to the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI), according to Bloomberg. In May, the San Francisco-based company also announced plans to slow hiring, reportedly for similar AI-related reasons.
The move unfolds amid mounting pressure on Uber's robotaxi segment. The company expects to invest $10 billion into this area, but faces hurdles due to increasing friction with other players in the field. Waymo currently operates driverless vehicles through Uber in Atlanta, Georgia, and Austin, Texas, but is expanding into other markets without Uber's involvement, while Tesla also pushes deeper into the robotaxi space. Tesla is set to host a Cybercab robotaxi unveiling event in Austin on Thursday.
Despite robust growth, Uber's revenue increased 18% in the 2024–2025 period, reaching $52 billion, according to its latest annual report. In Q2 2026, revenue rose 12% year-over-year to $14.2 billion, per financial results released last month. CEO Dara Khosrowshahi was compensated 360 times the median Uber employee salary in 2025, based on data from AFL-CIO.
On Wall Street, Uber shares are down 8% since the start of the year. However, on Wednesday, the stock rose more than 1.6% in midday trading. According to Layoffs.fyi, a website that tracks tech sector layoffs, more than 123,000 employees have been let go across nearly 290 companies in 2026 alone.
