The short answer
Uber is laying off about 3,300 employees, around 10% of its workforce, in a round announced on September 2, 2026, according to Al Jazeera and TechCrunch. Al Jazeera called it Uber's largest cut since the pandemic. CEO Dara Khosrowshahi announced the change in an email to staff that Uber published on its newsroom the same day. These are job cuts, and Uber's message says most affected employees had already been told.
What happened
Bloomberg first reported the cuts, per TechCrunch, and Uber then published Khosrowshahi's message to employees under the title "Building a simpler, faster Uber" on September 2, 2026. The message says the cut affects about 10% of the team and that affected employees had been notified, except in countries where a local process must run first.
Al Jazeera reported that Uber confirmed the next day, in response to its questions, that it had exited Nigeria and Uganda with immediate effect, and that a spokesperson said the decision was limited to those two markets.
Who is affected
Uber's message describes the cuts by structure rather than by team. It says Uber reduced the number of employees seven or more layers from the CEO by 20%, cut the number of micro-teams with only one or two reports by nearly 50%, and reduced roles focused mainly on coordination. It also says the three Delivery Ops teams for restaurants, retail and direct delivery are being combined, and that Core Services Engineering and Science are being merged.
Press reports describe the management change differently. Skift, citing the email as obtained by Bloomberg, reported a 20% reduction in managerial roles, and TechCrunch reported a 20% reduction in managers, with some moving to individual contributor roles. Uber's own published message puts the 20% figure on employees seven or more layers from the CEO.
A WARN notice filed on September 2, 2026 and listed by WARNTracker, which republishes U.S. Department of Labor data, gives a partial picture of U.S. locations. A WARN notice is a filing an employer must make before a large layoff at a single site.
| Location | Workers |
|---|---|
| Chicago, IL | 363 |
| San Francisco, CA | 253 |
| Sunnyvale, CA | 137 |
| Seattle, WA | 93 |
| Total | 846 |
The WARN figures come from WARNTracker and cover only sites that cross state notice thresholds, so they do not add up to the 3,300 total.
When it takes effect
Uber's message says affected employees had been notified by September 2, 2026, with exceptions in countries that require a local process. The WARN notice listed by WARNTracker gives November 2, 2026 as the effective date for the 846 U.S. positions it covers.
What the company said
Khosrowshahi's message says that Uber's growth over the past five-plus years brought more layers, more coordination and more fragmented ownership, and that structures built for a smaller company no longer work at Uber's size. It says internal surveys found too much time spent on coordination, slow debates and unclear decision rights, and that the goal is a simpler, faster company with capacity and savings freed up for investment.
On remote work, the message says most remote employees are being asked to move to an office, that only about 1% of employees will stay remote, and that the three-day-a-week hybrid policy will be enforced. It says global teams will be concentrated in New York and San Francisco hubs.
Severance and support
Uber's published message does not mention severance or support for departing employees, and none of the reports cited here describe a package.
Earlier cuts at Uber
Al Jazeera reported that in July 2026, Uber cut 10% of its customer service roles as it adopted AI, according to Bloomberg, and that in May it announced a hiring slowdown it also tied to AI. Engadget reported on July 23, 2026 that the July cuts hit the Community Operations team, Uber's global customer support network, and that a spokesperson said the cuts were made to simplify operations, strengthen in-person collaboration and continue to embrace AI.
Questions people ask
How many people did Uber lay off?
About 3,300 employees, around 10% of its workforce, according to Al Jazeera and TechCrunch. Uber's own message describes the cut as about 10% of the team.
Which Uber employees are affected?
Uber's message says it cut employees seven or more layers from the CEO by 20%, cut micro-teams of one or two reports by nearly 50%, and reduced coordination roles. Skift and TechCrunch reported a 20% reduction in managers. A WARN notice listed by WARNTracker covers 846 positions in Chicago, San Francisco, Sunnyvale and Seattle.
When do the Uber layoffs take effect?
Uber's September 2 message says affected employees had already been notified, except in countries with a local process. The WARN notice listed by WARNTracker gives November 2, 2026 as the effective date for the 846 U.S. positions it covers.
Do laid-off Uber employees get severance?
Uber's published message does not mention severance, and no severance terms have been reported for this round.