Airtime, the video startup from Evernote’s founder Phil Libin, has laid off dozens of staff, TechCrunch has discovered, and Airtime confirmed.
In accordance with the corporate, 25 folks have been let go from the 58-person crew — a change Airtime described as “greater than standard.”
Whereas Airtime characterizes the departures as a part of its typical seasonal method to employment, sources inside the corporate stated workers have been shocked by the announcement. Many have been beneath the impression the startup meant to lift funds this 12 months and have been beforehand instructed no cuts have been deliberate, they stated.
Formerly known as mmhmm, Airtime was launched in 2020 by Libin, whose Evernote, a note-taking startup, was valued at practically a $1 billion at its top earlier than being sidelined by newer rivals like Notion. (The corporate later sold to Bending Spoons in 2022 for a decidedly smaller determine.)
First launched amid the COVID pandemic, when all workplace work had abruptly shifted to video, Airtime right this moment presents two key instruments for on-line conferences. Its “Airtime Creator” lets customers current a deck whereas showing on display on the identical time, whereas its “Airtime Camera” permits customers to create customized appears to face out in conferences.
The startup launched a “seasons”-focused employment construction in late 2022, following a layoff of round 10%-15% of the workers, which had capped the corporate’s headcount at 100 whereas it looked for product-market match.
The thought was launched so workers wouldn’t face any shock firings or layoffs. As a substitute, the corporate would resolve roughly each six months who can be invited again for the subsequent “season.” This plan allowed Airtime to provide workers an extended heads-up in the event that they weren’t going to return, so they’d time to hunt different employment. And ideally, staff would work all through a full season earlier than selecting to stop.
Such a construction, as you may think about, was controversial. However the deal had been honored on each ends since its launch.
The current layoffs have annoyed workers as a result of, usually, their “season” would have ended on the final day of June, in accordance with what their managers instructed them, sources instructed us. However impacted staff have been given an finish date of Friday, June 6. Which means their severance covers a minimum of a few of what would have usually been provided in the event that they have been employed via the interval they have been promised beneath the “seasons” association.
Libin, nonetheless, says that folks’s departure dates range. Some keep an additional two weeks to complete up, and others go away sooner. And everyone seems to be receiving six weeks of severance from their final day, so the problem right here could possibly be worker confusion or miscommunications.
The layoffs themselves have been hashed out by management over two eight-hour periods at Nobu in Palo Alto, sources declare. Employees have been instructed on Tuesday, June 3, whereas their managers have been instructed the night time prior.
An unknown variety of unbiased contractors have been additionally let go, they stated.
As to what necessitated the cuts, firm insiders stated Airtime’s product by no means actually took off and skilled fairly a little bit of churn. Consumer acquisition advert spend additionally value Airtime excessive tens of hundreds of {dollars} per 30 days, and staff report that Libin was usually absent from day-to-day choices as he focused his attention on his restaurant in Arkansas.
Airtime, in the meantime, stated the bigger cuts needed to do with the corporate’s altering focus.
In an emailed assertion attributed to Libin, Airtime stated the next:
Since 2022, Airtime has operated on a ‘seasonal’ construction: two five-and-a-half-month work seasons per 12 months, with a shared two-week break in between. Close to the tip of every season, we resolve who comes again primarily based on plans for the next season. The corporate invitations some folks again, and so they resolve whether or not they need to return. There’s a mutual dedication that individuals who return won’t go away mid-season and that the corporate received’t terminate anybody mid-season apart from for severe misbehavior. We deal with everybody who departs on the finish of a season equally, whether or not or not they have been invited again. Product releases, hiring, departures, promotions, and different occasions are additionally timed across the seasons to supply folks with a predictable cadence. We’re presently in our sixth seasonal transition, and we’ve made adjustments to the crew each time. This alteration is greater than standard as a result of our focus modified greater than standard. Of 58 staff, we’ve requested 33 to return again subsequent season to work on our new merchandise and partnerships.
Up to now, Airtime has raised practically $135 million in enterprise funding throughout a number of early-stage rounds.
A few of these funds have been used for M&A, as with the deal to acquire filter-maker Memix in 2020, then acquire Macro, a maker of filters and reactions for online meetings, in 2021. The latter deal was targeted on bringing in founders with product chops, Ankith Harathi and John Keck. (The pair has since left Airtime, in accordance with their LinkedIn profiles.) Airtime dad or mum All Turtles additionally introduced in Alexander Pashintsev, who beforehand labored on AI at Evernote, however Airtime itself has not but made a major AI push.
Sarah Perez will be reached at sarahp@techcrunch.com and @sarahperez.01 on Sign. TechCrunch additionally presents safe tip traces here.
Correction: Airtime raised ~$135M, not $235M. The typo was corrected after publication; further details about severance was additionally added.