US-based meditation app Calm has cut 20% of its workforce, becoming the latest US tech company to announce job cuts.
The firm’s boss, David Koh, said the company, which has already laid off around 90 of its 400 staff, was “not immune” to the economic climate. “In building our strategic and financial plan, we reexamined the investment case behind each project and it became clear that we needed to make changes,” he said in a memo to staff.
“I can assure you that this was not an easy decision, but it is especially difficult for a company like ours whose mission is focused on mental health and wellness in the workplace.”
The Calm app, created in 2012, offers guided meditation and bedtime stories for people of all ages. It received a wave of downloads triggered by the Covid lockdown in 2020. By the end of that year, the software company said the app had been downloaded more than 100 million times worldwide and had amassed over 4 million paying subscribers.
Investors have valued the firm, which has said it has been profitable since 2016, at $2 billion.
In the note, Ko continued, “We did not come to this decision lightly, but we are confident that these changes will help us prioritize the future, focus on growth and become a more efficient organization.”
More than 500 startups have laid off employees this year, according to layoffs.fyi, a website that tracks such announcements.
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