Coinbase announced a 14% reduction in its workforce on Tuesday, the decision of CEO Brian Armstrong he explained such as preparing for what he called a “new way of working” built on artificial intelligence—not a defense mechanism for the market.
In a company-wide email, Armstrong cited two driving forces behind the move: the persistence of the crypto market and changes in how AI has transformed internal work processes.
Experts at Coinbase use AI to ship in days where full batches would take weeks to complete, Armstrong wrote, and the pace of change is accelerating, not slowing down.
Coinbase had 4,951 employees as of December 31, 2025, putting the number of affected employees at about 693. US employees who are leaving will receive at least 16 weeks of base pay, plus two weeks of service per year, their next vest, and six months of COBRA health care.
Workers on a work visa receive additional transitional assistance. Access to the system was cut off on the day of the announcement – a practice Armstrong acknowledged was brutal but justified as a matter of protecting customer data.
Bars follow the plan that comes from 2022. In June of that year, Coinbase to be terminated 18% of employees – 1,100 positions – as crypto prices fell and financial fears rose. In January 2023, the second major reduction is 20%, which affects 950 employees, following the collapse of FTX and the long-term decline of the market. The two races reduced the total to over 2,100. Each time, Armstrong used the pain as the foundation of a strong company on the other side.
Coinbase: AI is changing our company
This cycle has a moral conflict that the previous two did not. The reductions in 2022 and 2023 were market responses. The 2026 update is, in Armstrong’s view, an AI-driven overhaul of the way the company operates.
He has fired engineers who refused to use tools such as GitHub Copilot and Cursor after acquiring licenses for both businesses, and has set a target of 50% AI writing at Coinbase.
The idea of current cuts increases the role: if AI increases the output of a small group, the larger group becomes a drag on the performance.
Armstrong’s evolution charts are extensive. The company will be down to five divisions under the CEO and COO. Each manager should have a personal support role – the example of a “player coach”. Cross-functional “AI-native pods” will replace traditional teams, and experiment in one-person teams that fold engineering, design, and product roles into a single unit.
COIN shares are trading near $210 in pre-market trading, part of the highs reached by the end of 2024.
