The past few years, especially after the onset of the funding winter in 2022, have been challenging for the Indian startup job market, as job cuts reigned supreme on the back of shrinking funding and expiring cash runways.
Once celebrated for creating over 12.42 Lakh jobs in India, the ecosystem started losing its sheen as a reliable employer. The root cause? A brutal combination of a harsh funding winter and cost-cutting measures by startups to sustain.
According to Inc42’s Indian startup layoff tracker, over 35,000 employees lost their jobs during the height of this crisis. However, the year 2024 brought some respite, with nearly 9K+ startup employees losing their jobs against 17K+ in 2023.
This positive trend highlights a departure from the bleak patterns of 2022 and 2023 when startups collectively terminated tens of thousands of jobs.
So, what has sparked this turnaround?
One key factor is the recovery in startup funding. Between January and November 2024, Indian startups raised over $10 Bn+, marking a 15% increase from $8.67 Bn raised in the same period last year. This resurgence in funding has been instrumental in stabilising the ecosystem, reducing layoffs, and restoring some balance.
Still, layoffs persisted in certain sectors. Companies like Paytm, Ola Electric, BYJU’S, and Swiggy accounted for over 70% of the total layoffs in 2024, with edtech, fintech, and healthtech sectors leading the pack. Paytm alone has laid off more than 5K employees this year.
What drove this bloodbath was a shift in the mindset of Indian founders, who are now more focussed on achieving profitability and cost efficiency over burning cash. We believe this would go a long way in keeping the attrition rate at bay.
Standing on the precipice of 2024, we have compiled a list of Indian startups that have sacked their human resources in droves. This endeavour is part of the 11th edition of Inc42’s annual “Year in Review” series — 2024 In Review.
Editor’s Note: This is not a ranking of any kind, and the startups have been listed in descending order as per the no. of employees laid off.
1. Paytm Cuts Thousands Of Jobs This Year
In May this year, Paytm said it had begun the process to cull 5,000 to 6,300 jobs in FY25. With this move, Paytm was said to be looking to save around INR 400-500 Cr on employee costs. In the fourth quarter of FY24, Paytm’s employee cost increased by 13% YoY to INR 1,104.4 Cr.
Paytm also laid off 1,000 employees in December last year. However, as per Paytm’s FY24 earnings report, the company let go of more than 3,500 sales employees between December 2023 and March 2024.
In FY23, the company had an average of 32,798 on-roll employees, with 29,503 actively on-roll and 1,589 off-roll employees worldwide.
2. Freshworks Layoffs 660 Employees Globally
SaaS major Freshworks said it would slash 13% of its global workforce in November this year. The move impacted as many as 660 staffers, who were sent an email regarding the same by Dennis Woodside, the CEO of Freshworks.
In its SEC filing, the company said that it expected to incur $11-13 Mn in restructuring costs in the fourth quarter of 2024, comprising severance payments, employee benefits and related expenses.
Per the company, the decision was in line with its strategy to shift its focus to customer experience (CX) products, AI, and employee experience business (EX).
3. BYJU’S Showed Pink Slips To 500 Employees This Year
Involved in multiple conflicts with its investors, Byju Reveendran-led edtech BYJU’s axed 500 jobs in April this year as part of its ongoing restructuring exercise. The move impacted the sales function the most.
The company is said to have laid off its employees without giving them any prior notice. The impacted employees were told about their dismissal over a phone call.
Of the total employees who were shown pink slips, as many as 240 employees were said to be working at BYJU’s Tuition Centres.
In September 2023, the cash-starved edtech decided to cut 4,000 jobs. By this time, it had already fired more than 7,000 employees.
4. Ola Electric Fires 500
Listed EV manufacturer Ola Electric sacked 500 employees in November. The move was in line with the company’s focus on streamlining its workforce to improve profitability and margins.
According to Ola Electric’s financial performance during Q2 FY25, its employee expenses increased 13% QoQ and 23% YoY to INR 139 Cr. Meanwhile, total expenses declined 14% QoQ to INR 1,593 Cr during the quarter.
Notably, Ola Electric’s parent, ANI Technologies, laid off 200 employees in a restructuring activity last year.
5. Swiggy Cuts 400 Jobs To Show Profitability Before Listing
Before going for the IPO, listed foodtech giant Swiggy started a company-wide restructuring drive earlier this year.
In January, sources confirmed Inc42 that the company was looking to cut 350-400 jobs. The build-up for a layoff started last year when the Swiggy leadership made it clear in a town hall that it wanted to put profitability first.
The retrenchment is said to have impacted employees across sales, customer service and tech teams. Last year also, Swiggy sacked 380 employees in a restructuring effort.
6. WayCool Rationalises 270+ Jobs This Year
Chennai-based foodtech and agritech venture WayCool sacked 70 employees in February this year. The retrenchment exercise is said to have impacted employees across departments, including sales, research, marketing, and tech.
Five months later in July 2024, the startup slashed over 200 jobs across several verticals. The third restructuring event within a span of one year impacted employees across Chennai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad, and its subsidiaries — CensaNext and BrandNext.
Notably, precisely a year ago in July 2023, the company let go of 300 employees in its effort to turn profitable.
After the second round of layoffs, WayCool raised a debt funding of INR 100 Cr ($11.8 Mn) from Grand Anicut. The company has raised a total funding of around $300 Mn so far and is backed by investors such as Lightrock, Lightbox, Lightsmith, 57 Stars, and FMO.
7. In Distress, Unacademy Lets Go Of 250 Employees
Bengaluru-based edtech startup Unacademy fired 250 employees in a restructuring activity in July this year. As many as 150 employees were part of the sales team, and the remaining were from other departments.
The rationalisation of jobs was done to streamline operations and focus on sustainability and growth. According to the Inc42 layoff tracker, Unacademy has laid off more than 2,000 employees since the start of the funding winter in 2022.
It is pertinent to note that Unacademy acquired PrepLadder has also undergone a restructuring exercise, laying off 145 employees, this year.
8. Ola Consumer Fires 200 On The Back Of Profitability & Automation
Bhavish Aggarwal-led Ola Consumer (formerly Ola Cabs) sent 10% of its workforce, or 200 employees, packing in April this year. The layoff exercise impacted employees across departments. It was also reported that CEO Hemant Bakshi, too, had quit the startup within months of joining.
Moving on, the move to cut jobs was largely attributed to the company’s march towards profitability and cutting of redundant roles automated by artificial intelligence (AI).
Ola Consumer also decided to exit some international markets in April, including the UK, Australia and New Zealand. According to a report by Financial Review, Ola laid off employees in these regions, too. Last year, ANI Technologies axed 200 employees, which also included employees of Ola Consumer. The ride-hailing company is making its second attempt at public listing.
9. Cash-Starved Dunzo Fires More Than 150 Employees
Amid an ongoing cash crunch, Reliance Retail-backed Dunzo laid off 150 of its staffers in August this year.
This fresh round of retrenchment at the hyperlocal quick commerce startup left it with only 50 employees spread across marketplace and supply verticals.
The startup was said to be struggling to raise new capital, scale its revenues and curtail losses. Dunzo had cut more than 300 jobs last year as well in multiple rounds.
The build-up for the fresh round of layoffs was followed by multiple salary delays and key exits from the board of directors.
After the startup decided to step into the quick commerce race, it started experiencing heavy cash burns and is currently in the midst of insolvency proceedings.
10. Healthify Layoffs 150 Employees To Emerge Profitable
Healthtech startup Helathify (formerly HealthifyMe) sacked 150 employees, constituting 27% of the total workforce in April. CEO Tushar Vashisht confirmed the layoffs to Inc42, mentioning that the decision was taken to make the startup’s India business EBITDA profitable and expand its offerings to the US market.
Sales and product teams were mostly impacted due to the cost-cutting measure. The outgoing employees were paid 2-month’s salary, extended insurance coverage, accelerated stock vesting period in some cases, and leave encashment.
At a time when the healthtech ecommerce platform was cutting jobs, it was simultaneously investing in Generative AI.
11. Edtech Platform Scaler Slashes Headcount By 150 Employees
Bengaluru-based edtech startup Scaler sacked 150 employees on the back of achieving their goal of long-term growth and sustainability. The laid-off employees constitute about 10% of its total workforce.
Founder Abhimanyu Sexana said in a statement that the retrenchment activity was not related to employees’ performance issues and the outgoing employees would be provided all the necessary support for a smooth transition.
Founded in 2014 by Saxena and Anshuman Singh, Scaler offers technical education led by leaders in the field of technology. The edtech’s consolidated net loss increased by 90% to INR 330.3 Cr in FY23 from INR 174 Cr in FY22.
12. The Good Glamm Group Downsized 150 Of Its Employees
The Good Glamm Group is another startup to have laid off 150 employees this year to attain profitability. On the back of this retrenchment activity, the startup aimed to achieve profitability by FY25.
In a statement, the content-to-consumer startup said that streamlining the organisation structure and making it leaner for faster decision-making was another reason that led to this decision.
The retrenchment activity was the result of the integration of all of Good Glamm’s acquired entities in the past few years. The Mumbai-based startup aims to go for its IPO by Diwali 2025.
13. PrepLadder Terminates 145 Staffers
Unacademy acquired PrepLadder and fired 145 employees on the back of a shift in its sales strategy. The impacted employees were sent an email, stating their termination on an immediate basis.
The NEET prep platform employs around 560 people and this layoff comprised about 25% of its workforce. The layoffs impacted the sales, marketing, product and tech teams the most. Of the total employees who were sacked, as many as 100 were part of the on-field sales team.
The restructuring exercise was conducted to improve the efficiency of the business. Unacademy, too, laid off 250 employees this year.
14. Vertex Ventures-Backed Beepkart Cuts 130 Jobs
Downsizing 40% of its workforce, the Bengaluru-based used two-wheeler online marketplace has fired around 130 employees in three consecutive rounds this year. The last round of layoffs at BeepKart took place in the last week of September, with the sacking of 60-70 employees working from the Bengaluru and Chennai offices.
The founder first conducted a town hall meeting after which the respective managers disclosed the news to impacted employees.
According to an Inc42 source, the employees were told that the online marketplace was finding it hard to scale up and didn’t have much cash to bear the rising cost. The outgoing employees were paid a severance package as per the notice period served.
BeepKart also had to shut down six out of its 11 stores in Bengaluru and Chennai during the same period.
15. Simpl Laid Off 130 Staffers In Two Rounds
Fintech startup Simpl conducted two rounds of layoffs this year, impacting 100 employees in the first and another 30 in the second round, taking the total to 130. By cutting employee costs, the Bengaluru-based fintech is aiming to turn profitable by mid-2025.
The startup offered extended medical coverage, outplacement services, a fixed salary for the notice period served and a fixed salary of 15 days for every year spent at the fintech startup to the affected employees.
Additionally, the severance package also included a pro-rated fixed salary up to a specific date per the employment agreement.
16. Zomato-Backed Curefit Layoffs 120 Employees
Bengaluru-based healthtech unicorn CureFit gave pink slips to 120 of its employees in January.
The restructuring process impacted employees across brands like Sugar.fit, Carefit and Cultfit. The Zomato-backed startup told Inc42 that the decision was taken on the back of cutting some redundant positions, streamlining operations and improving productivity.
CureFit rationalised 1,000 jobs employees in 2020 as well, citing nationwide lockdown. The startup had to close down its physical fitness centres in Tier 2 cities.
17. Pristyn Care Culls 120 Jobs
IPO-bound healthcare unicorn Pristyn Care laid off 120 employees in March this year to attain profitability. Delhi NCR-based Pristyn Care is planning to go for its IPO in 2027 and is focussing on profitability.
In a statement, the company spokesperson said that the impacted number of employees was 7% to 8% of the total workforce of 1,700.
The let-go employees received a severance package and extended medical insurance coverage, and the company accelerated the vesting of ESOPs for the outgoing employees.
18. Log9 Materials Eliminates 115 Contractual Roles
Earlier this year, lithium-ion manufacturer Log9 Materials eliminated 115 contractual jobs.
Cofounder Pankaj Sharma confirmed the layoffs, revealing that the startup has axed ‘115-ish’ contractual roles on the back of automation.
The layoffs were conducted in a stepwise manner and the let-go workers were given their severance pay.
It was also said that the Bengaluru-based manufacturer also delayed salaries of their employees since January this year.
19. HealthPlix Axes 100 Roles Due To Performance
The healthcare SaaS platform HealthPlix fired 100 employees in April. The company confirmed the layoffs and said that 50-60 of the employees were fired after their performance review and redundancies.
This layoff resulted in a 10% reduction in HealthPlix’s workforce. All outgoing employees were paid for two months as part of their severance package. Founded in 2014, Lightspeed and Kalaari Capital-backed HealthPlix allows doctors to create a full medical profile of their patients with the help of its ERM software.
20. Kuku FM Cuts 100 Jobs In A Cost-Cutting Effort
Audiobook platform Kuku FM fired 80-100 employees in a restructuring exercise. Further, the Mumbai-based startup laid off contractual employees as well, taking the number to more than 300.
The retrenchment activity was part of the cost-cutting exercise at Kuku FM, which was trying to leverage AI capabilities to automate content creation. The outgoing employees mostly included writers and producers.
21. Aakash Sacks 80 Employees
The offline coaching centre Aakash fired 80-100 employees, citing a change in their business model.
The impacted staffers included senior and mid-level management professionals and some tenured employees.
A month after the layoffs, Aakash reportedly shuttered its digital classrooms, and the employees working in the Aakash Digital Classroom Programme (AD-CRP) were moved to sales.
22. Licious Fires 80 Staffers
IIFL-backed foodtech startup Licious sacked around 80 employees (about 3% of its total workforce of 3,000 people). The layoffs happened across production and supply chain functions in the company.
Confirmed the information, the company said it was reprioritising its cost outlays and considering new growth opportunities.
Founded in 2015 by Abhay Hanjura and Vivek Gupta, Licious is an online retail market, which sells meat, seafood, cold cuts, and ready-to-eat meat items. Currently, the brand is expanding its offline presence and wants to follow a comprehensive approach by creating multiple selling channels.
23. Bolt.Earth Cuts 40-60% Of Its Workforce
Earlier this year, Inc42 exclusively reported that the EV charging infrastructure provider Bolt.Earth furloughed more than 70 employees, accounting for 40% to 60% of their total workforce.
At the time, Bolt.Earth closed down its two verticals – the Operating System (OS) for electric vehicles and the fleet management system. The impacted employees were given a 1-2 month severance package.
Founded in 2017, Bolt.Earth offers electric vehicle charging solutions for businesses, individuals, real estate companies, fleet operators, and the government.
24. MUFG-Backed Lentra Sacks 70-80 Employees
Fintech startup Lentra laid off 70-80 employees in a restructuring activity earlier this year.
In a statement to Inc42, Ankur Handa, the president and cofounder of Lentra, confirmed the layoffs but did not disclose the number of employees impacted.
The impacted employees were offered a severance package, outplacement assistance, counselling services, and six months of health insurance coverage.
25. Kissflow Axes 45-50 In US, UAE & India
Workflow management solutions startup Kissflow fired 45-50 employees in June 2024 after annual performance reviews.
Sales, marketing and product development functions were the most impacted teams. The reduction of workforce happened across geographical locations, including India, the US and the UAE.
Founded in 2012 by Suresh Sambandam, Kissflow is a SaaS-based enterprise solutions platform. It offers application development support with its no-code and low-code solutions, which automate processes like customer case management and employee self-service.
26. Dozee Fires 40-50 Employees To Cut Losses
Bengaluru-based healthtech startup Dozee sacked 40-50 employees to cut losses. The restructuring exercise impacted the on-field employees, marketing, sales and customer success personnel.
Without disclosing the exact number of employees fired, the startup told Inc42 that the layoffs were the result of the reallocation of resources and had impacted a small number of people.
The let-go employees were offered a severance package based on their respective notice period.
Dozee’s rising employee costs and declining revenues led to the downsizing activity. The healthtech startup’s employee expenses increased five times to INR 54 Cr in FY23 from INR 17 Cr in FY22.
27. Airmeet Layoffs 30+ Staffers Due To Declining Revenues
In 2024, Prosus-backed virtual event platform Airmeet laid off 30 employees in two rounds. The first round of layoffs took place in March and the company fired 20% of its workforce. However, the startup did not disclose the exact number of employees fired in this round.
It conducted another round of layoffs in September in which it sacked 30 employees from the product, design and tech teams. Both rounds of retrenchments impacted tech teams the most.
The layoffs at Airmeet were part of its cost-cutting exercise since the platform was struggling to scale its revenue. The virtual event platform axed 75 jobs in May 2023 as well.
28. Blissclub Fires 21 Employees To Cull Cash Burns
Earlier this year, the Bengaluru-based fashion startup Blissclub sacked 21 employees. The employees were asked to either quit by themselves or face termination. The sacked employees were given a two-month salary as a severance package.
Minu Margeret founder and CEO said that the company fired 21 employees but sources confirmed that the number could be north of 30. Various teams were impacted, including sales, marketing, growth and product.
The prime reason for cutting jobs at Blissclub was its inability to raise fresh funds amid high cash burns.
29. Wint Wealth Removes 19 Non-Performing Employees
Fintech startup Wint Wealth fired 19 of its employees (about 20% workforce). The retrenchment activity impacted various departments such as marketing, sales, and tech.
The company said it had to restructure some low-priority functions as part of our regular business performance evaluation, impacting 19 people.
The development had come close on the heels of the startup acquiring a majority stake in Chandigarh-based non-banking financial company (NBFC) Ambium Finserve.
Founded in 2020 by Abhik Patel, Ajinkya Kulkarni, Anshul Gupta and Shashank Chimaladari, Wint Wealth is a fintech venture, which facilitates its users to invest in fixed deposits, corporate bonds, sovereign gold bonds, and bond baskets via its platform.
30. The 1% Club Trims 15% Of Its Total Strength
The latest one to enter the layoffs club is “The 1% Club”, which sacked 15% of its total workforce to cut costs. In a LinkedIn post, cofounder Sharan Hegde said that due to mistakes in hiring decisions and AI-led automation, the startup had to restructure its workforce.
Founded in 2022 by Hegde and Gupta, The 1% Club provides education through resources, and mentorship programmes to its members-only community. It also helps them with investment and networking opportunities.