This is an email I sent earlier today to all employees at Coinbase:
Team,
Today I’ve made the difficult decision to reduce the size of Coinbase by ~14%. I want to walk you through why we're doing this now, what it means for those affected, and how this positions us for the…
Armstrong pointed to crypto market volatility, noting that, "we’re currently in a down market and need to adjust our cost structure now," adding that AI has changed working practices at the exchange.
"Over the past year, I've watched engineers use AI to ship in days what used to take a team weeks," he wrote. "Non-technical teams are now shipping production code and many of our workflows are being automated."
The layoff is a structural reset for one of crypto's most prominent publicly traded companies, arriving as AI-driven workforce reductions continue across the broader tech and crypto sectors.
The restructuring will flatten Coinbase's org chart to five layers maximum below the CEO and COO, eliminate pure management roles, requiring all leaders to remain active individual contributors.
The hiring will be concentrated around what Armstrong called "AI-native pods," including experimental single-person teams combining engineering, design, and product functions.
"Leaders will own much more, with as many as 15+ direct reports," Armstrong wrote.
Armstrong had flagged at the time that the company would "likely have more agents than human employees at some point soon."
AI-driven workforce layoffs have been taking place across the crypto industry, leaving thousands of workers displaced as companies redirect resources toward automation, AI infrastructure, and leaner operating models.
Affected Coinbase employees will have their system access revoked immediately.
U.S. staff will receive a minimum severance package of 16 weeks' base pay plus two additional weeks per year of service, their next equity vest, and six months of COBRA coverage, and Visa holders will receive additional transition support.
"The Coinbase that emerges from this will be more capable than ever to achieve our mission," Armstrong wrote.
