Crypto.com layoffs: the exchange is cutting about 12% of staff and its chief executive ties the cuts to a company-wide AI pivot

Crypto.com is cutting about 12% of its workforce, and its chief executive attributes the cuts to a shift to enterprise-wide AI. Kris Marszalek announced the reduction on 19 March 2026 in a post on X, which The Block quotes: "We are joining the list of companies integrating enterprise-wide AI. Companies that do not make this pivot immediately will fail. Companies that move slowly will be left behind. Companies that move immediately and pair the best AI tools with top-performers will achieve a level of scale and precision that was previously impossible." The Block reports he said the cuts target roles that "do not adapt" as the company integrates enterprise-wide AI, and that affected staff were notified and given transition resources. Against a previously disclosed headcount of more than 1,500, 12% is roughly 180 people, but the company has not published a headcount for this round, so that figure is an estimate. It is the exchange's third workforce reduction since 2022; the earlier ones were put down to the market. A recruiter quoted elsewhere doubts AI is the real cause, but the company itself has not retreated from the AI framing.