Video game software company Unity Software in San Francisco has announced that it will be laying off about 1,800 workers, or about 25% of its staff. As of the end of March, the business will have fired the most people ever. Over 1.1 million game developers use the Unity software toolkit every month, but the majority of non-game industry people are unaware of it. The cuts will have an impact on every team, department, and aspect of the business.
The move to fire people comes after Jim Whitehurst, the interim CEO, called for a "company reset" in November. The change is meant to help the company stay focused on its main business and achieve long-term success and profit. A company representative stated that there will be more changes, but they did not give any specifics on the structural changes. This is the fourth time since July 2022 that the company has let people go.
After a rough patch for Unity, the cuts and company reset come as a relief. In September of last year, the company got in trouble for trying to change its pricing strategy so that game developers would have to pay more. The company changed the new fees after developers protested and the share price dropped. After John Riccitiello, the company's former CEO, retired, Whitehurst was named temporary CEO, and Roelof Botha was named board chairman.
Three Danish engineers created Unity almost 20 years ago. It became very popular among game makers very quickly because of its "game engine," which lets you easily make games and share them across mobile and desktop devices. Virtual reality and 3D graphics are also used in other areas, like movies and cars. Unity went public in 2020, and in November 2021, its stock price hit 200 dollars. That was after it dropped below $30 the previous year. Since the company said it would reset, its stock price has gone up almost 40%.
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