Snapchat has announced plans to lay off about 16% of its global workforce, affecting roughly 1,000 employees, as part of a restructuring effort aimed at improving efficiency and cutting costs.
The development was disclosed in a memo sent to staff by CEO Evan Spiegel on Wednesday, which was also made public through a regulatory filing.
The move comes as Snap looks to reposition its business amid growing competition in the social media and digital advertising space.
Snapchat said the layoffs are driven in part by advancements in artificial intelligence, which it believes can help streamline operations and reduce repetitive tasks.
According to Spiegel, “rapid advancements in artificial intelligence enable our teams to reduce repetitive work, increase velocity, and better support our community, partners, and advertisers.”
He added that internal teams are already leveraging AI tools to improve key areas of the business, including Snapchat+, advertising performance, and infrastructure efficiency.
“On April 15, 2026, we announced a plan to reduce our global headcount by approximately 16% of our global full-time employees. The headcount reduction is designed to further streamline our operations and reallocate resources toward our highest-priority initiatives, leveraging increased operational efficiencies to accelerate our path toward net-income profitability.
“The majority of these costs are expected to be incurred during the second quarter of 2026. Potential position eliminations in each country are subject to local law and consultation requirements, which may extend this process into the third quarter of 2026 or beyond in certain countries,” they stated
The company also announced it will shut down more than 300 open roles as part of the restructuring.
