Unity Software Announces Third Round of Layoffs: 600 Employees to be Affected

Unity Software, a leading video game software developer, announced plans to lay off 600 employees, or 8% of its workforce, in a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday. This is the third round of job cuts at the company in less than a year, following the layoffs of 225 employees in June 2022 and 284 employees in January 2023.

The company said that the layoffs are part of a restructuring plan that will affect "specific teams" and help the company position itself for "long-term and profitable growth". The company also said that it will reduce the number of its offices globally and shift to a hybrid work model that requires employees to work from the office at least three days per week starting in June.

Unity Software was founded in 2004 and has become a major player in game creation over the past decade. Its software is used by millions of developers to create games for various platforms, including mobile, PC, console and virtual reality. The company went public in September 2021 and reported a revenue of $451 million in the fourth quarter of 2022, which was a 43% increase from the same period in 2021 and the first profitable quarter since becoming a publicly traded company.

However, despite its strong financial performance, Unity Software has faced challenges in maintaining its growth and competitiveness in the gaming industry. The company's CEO John Riccitiello said that the company had too many layers of management and needed to streamline its operations to achieve higher growth. He also said that the company faced increased competition from rivals such as Epic Games, which owns the popular Unreal Engine software.

The layoffs at Unity Software are part of a broader trend of tech layoffs in 2023, as several companies have announced plans to reduce their head count amid economic uncertainty and changing market conditions. Some of the other companies that have conducted layoffs this year include Amazon, Gap, Disney, McDonalds and Dropbox.