Online Education Startup Udacity Cuts 20% of Staff to Reach Profitability
Udacity lays off 75 employees as co-founder Sebastian Thrun implements a strategic restructuring plan to eliminate runaway costs. The online education company aims to reach break-even or profitability by next quarter.
Udacity lays off approximately 20 percent of its workforce, cutting 75 employees including some leadership staff, as part of a major restructuring effort. The online education startup now employs 300 full-time workers and 60 contractors as co-founder Sebastian Thrun takes decisive action to bring operational costs in line with revenue.
The company struggles with runaway costs and inefficiencies after experiencing rapid expansion in recent years. While revenue doubled in 2017 due to popular self-driving car and deep learning programs, new nanodegrees added in 2018 fail to attract the same level of interest as costs continue to expand.
Thrun, who steps in as interim CEO last October, insists these layoffs represent a strategic turnaround plan rather than a quick cost-cutting measure. He states that by refocusing the product strategy and reducing internal red tape, Udacity plans to shift from a money-losing operation to a break-even or profitable company by next quarter.