Block (formerly Square)

On February 27, 2026, Block (formerly Square) laid off approximately 4,000 employees — 40% of its workforce — with CEO Jack Dorsey explicitly citing AI as the reason. Dorsey stated 'Intelligence tools have changed what it means to build and run a company' and predicted most companies would make similar cuts within a year. Bloomberg raised suspicions of 'AI-washing,' suggesting the AI justification may have been overstated to make the cuts appear strategic rather than purely cost-driven.

Block announced layoffs affecting 931 employees, approximately 8% of its workforce, following a previous round of roughly 1,000 layoffs in January 2024. CEO Jack Dorsey categorized the cuts as 391 people eliminated for being 'off strategy,' 460 workers terminated for performance (scoring below on internal metrics), and 80 managers removed to flatten the hierarchy. The layoffs were communicated via a company-wide email from Dorsey.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ordered Block to pay up to $175 million ($120M in consumer refunds, $55M penalty) after finding Cash App employed weak security protocols, conducted incomplete fraud investigations, provided misleading customer service (phone number led to a pre-recorded message, not live support), and failed to act on knowledge that customers were being targeted by fraudsters impersonating Cash App representatives. Block also shifted responsibility to banks while blocking them from reversing fraudulent transactions.

Block settled with 48 US state regulators for $80 million over Bank Secrecy Act and anti-money laundering law violations at Cash App and Square. The settlement required Block to hire an independent consultant to review the effectiveness of its compliance programs. Investigations revealed Square processed thousands of transactions involving sanctioned countries (Cuba, Iran, Russia, Venezuela) as recently as 2023, and processed cryptocurrency transactions for terrorist groups without filing required reports.

Block operates one of the largest open source programs in fintech, with over 500 repositories across multiple GitHub organizations (Block, Square, TBD, Web5). Key contributions include the Lightning Development Kit (LDK) for Bitcoin Lightning Network integration, the tbDEX open-source liquidity protocol, Web5 decentralized identity platform, and Bitcoin cold storage tools (Subzero). Block also provides grants to independent Bitcoin developers through its Spiral program and conducts design, roadmap, and code reviews in public by default.

Block CEO Jack Dorsey co-authored a letter sent to the US Environmental Protection Agency defending Bitcoin mining and disputing claims about its environmental impact. This followed a 2021 Square/Ark Invest white paper titled 'Bitcoin Is Key to an Abundant, Clean Energy Future.' The letter responded to concerns raised by 23 members of Congress about Bitcoin mining polluting communities and contributing to greenhouse gas emissions. Environmental critics argued the claims were misleading, noting Bitcoin mining continues to rely heavily on fossil fuels.