Mews is cutting 15% of its staff, and its founder says one employee can now do so much more with AI

Mews, the Amsterdam-based hotel software company, cut 15 percent of its 1,350-person staff on 7 July 2026, a spokesperson told Hotel Dive. The company put no number on it. Founder Richard Valtr gave the reason on the record to Skift: the change "does impact a number of different roles built for an era that is ceasing to exist, because of the fact that a singular employee can do so, so much more with AI." The founders' own post to staff is softer, describing a plan to become "AI-native" because "AI is now capable of handling much of the execution layer" of hotel work, and noting the company is still hiring for some roles. Mews sells automation to hotels, and its pitch to them has been that software can take over front-desk and back-office tasks. Its founder is now saying the same thing has happened inside the company that makes the software.