23andMe Lays Off 40% Of Employees As Company Undergoes Restructuring

23andMe's CEO called the decision to lay off 200 employees "difficult but necessary."

23andMe has laid off 40% of its employees as the company undergoes restructuring. They have also discontinued the therapeutic development programs.

CNN confirmed the news of 23andMe’s latest shakeup, as the genetic testing firm has faced multiple internal disputes in the past year. Regarding its workforce reduction, which will total 200 employees, CEO Anne Wojcicki called the layoffs a “difficult but necessary” step to keep the company alive.

“We are taking these difficult but necessary actions as we restructure 23andMe and focus on the long-term success of our core consumer business and research partnerships,” explained Wojcicki.

For its therapeutic programs, Wojcicki confirmed that they are pursuing alternatives such as licensing agreements and asset sales. By eliminating hundreds of jobs and stripping the therapeutic programs, 23andMe expects to save around $35 million.

The company, once valued at $6 billion, experienced a severe drop in share prices following leadership struggles, a data breach in 2023, and merger issues. The suffering company faced another blow in September when its board of directors resigned. The board’s seven members quit after Wojcicki failed to offer a satisfactory plan to take the company private.

Moreover, due to last year’s data breach, the company may have to pay customers up to $10k for compromising their sensitive data. In September, they settled a class-action lawsuit brought against them for $30 million. The breach impacted nearly 7 million customers, with hackers potentially taking their birth years, ancestry reports, and raw genotypes.

Wojcicki co-founded the San Francisco-based company in 2006, which became famous for its at-home DNA testing kits. Despite its decline, she remains committed to restoring the company to financial stability. As of Nov. 12, 23andMe’s share price increased by 6% to $4.87. Additionally, Wojcicki continues her quest to replace the board members.