Zwift to lay off 15% of workforce to 'invest in product'

Zwift is to make significant staff cuts in order to "invest more heavily in its product".

An internal memo informed staff that 80 people – equivalent to 15% of its workforce – are to be laid off, according to a report by DCRainmaker. The changes come out of a "fresh look" at the virtual ride platform's business, and come hot on the heels of new co-CEO Kurt Beidler taking up his post alongside founder and co-CEO Eric Min in December.

While the cuts range across the company, the 'people' teams such as HR and marketing are being hit the hardest, particularly the latter.

In a statement issued to Cycling Weekly, Zwift cited investment in product as the priority now, the cuts point to a period of development over sales.

Zwift told us: "After very careful consideration, we have taken the decision to make important changes to the organization. These changes mean we will regretfully be parting ways with a number of very talented colleagues. We are grateful for their contributions to Zwift and will do our best to support them in their transition.

"The changes made today impact teams across the business but some have been impacted more than others. Scaling back in some areas will allow us to invest more heavily in our product. The changes we have made will allow us to further increase the speed of development, adding greater value to our customers through new experiences and more engaging content."

This is the second major round of layoffs at the company inside a year – 150 people were given notice last May after it paused plans for a new smart bike just months after announcing them. 

It said at the time: “Given the current macroeconomic environment, we have decided to scale back our hardware offering, pausing plans to launch a smart bike."

More recently Zwift released its new Scotland world ahead of this year's Glasgow World Championship, with routes based on Glasgow city centre as well as rural forays into moors and mountains.

Those affected by this latest round of redundancies would benefit from "a generous severance" package, according to Rainmaker's report, as well as bonuses due and careers support.