Jon Leigh

Software engineering, scaling startups, 🍷 and 🥩. Engineering Director at @moneyboxteam

[Brian Armstrong @brian_armstrong]

This is an email I sent earlier today to all employees at Coinbase:

Team,

Today I’ve made the difficult decision to reduce the size of Coinbase by ~14%. I want to walk you through why we're doing this now, what it means for those affected, and how this positions us for the future.

Why now
Two forces are converging at the same time. We need to be front footed to respond to both.

First, the market. Coinbase is well-capitalized, has diversified revenue streams, and is well-positioned to weather any storm. Crypto is also on the verge of the next wave of adoption, with stablecoins, prediction markets, tokenization, and more taking off. However, our business is still volatile from quarter to quarter. While we've managed through that cyclicality many times before and come out stronger on the other side, we’re currently in a down market and need to adjust our cost structure now so that we emerge from this period leaner, faster, and more efficient for our next phase of growth.

Second, AI is changing how we work. Over the past year, I’ve watched engineers use AI to ship in days what used to take a team weeks. Non-technical teams are now shipping production code and many of our workflows are being automated. The pace of what's possible with a small, focused team has changed dramatically, and it's accelerating every day.

All of this has led us to an inflection point, not just for Coinbase, but for every company. The biggest risk now is not taking action. We are adjusting early and deliberately to rebuild Coinbase to be lean, fast, and AI-native. We need to return to the speed and focus of our startup founding, with AI at our core.

What this means
To get there, we are not just reducing headcount and cutting costs, we’re fundamentally changing how we operate: rebuilding Coinbase as an intelligence, with humans around the edge aligning it. What does this mean in practice?

- Fewer layers, faster decisions: We are flattening our org structure to 5 layers max below CEO/COO. Layers slow things down and create coordination tax. The future is small, high context teams that can move quickly. Leaders will own much more, with as many as 15+ direct reports. Fewer layers also means a leaner cost structure that is built to perform through all market cycles.

- No pure managers: Every leader at Coinbase must also be a strong and active individual contributor. Managers should be like player-coaches, getting their hands dirty alongside their teams.

- AI-native pods: We’ll be concentrating around AI-native talent who can manage fleets of agents to drive outsized impact. We’ll also be experimenting with reduced pod sizes, including “one person teams” with engineers, designers, and product managers all in one role.

In short: AI is bringing a profound shift in how companies operate, and we’re reshaping Coinbase to lead in this new era. This is a new way of working, and we need to leverage AI across every facet of our jobs.

To those who are affected
I know there are real people behind these decisions — talented colleagues who have poured themselves into this company and our mission. To those of you who will be leaving: thank you. You’ve helped build Coinbase into what it is today, and I am sincerely grateful for everything you've done.

All impacted team members will receive an email to their personal account in the next hour with more information, and an invitation to meet with an HRBP and a senior leader in your organization. Coinbase system access has been removed today. I know this feels sudden and harsh, but it is the only responsible choice given our duty to protect customer information.

To those affected, we will be providing a comprehensive package to support you through this transition. US employees will receive a minimum of 16 weeks base pay (plus 2 weeks per year worked), their next equity vest, and 6 months of COBRA. Employees on a work visa will get extra transition support. Those outside of the US will receive similar support, based on local factors and subject to any consultation requirements.

Coinbase prides itself on talent density. Our employees are among the most talented people in the world, and I have no doubt that your skills and experience will be highly sought after as you pursue your next chapters.

How we move forward
To the team that is staying, I know this is a difficult day. We’re saying goodbye to colleagues and friends you've been in the trenches with. But here’s what I want you to know as we move forward together:

Over the past 13 years, we have weathered four crypto winters, gone public, and built the most trusted platform in our industry. We’ve made it this far by making hard decisions and by always staying focused on our mission. This time will be no different – nothing has changed about the long term outlook of our company or industry. And most importantly, our mission has never been more important for the world. Increasing economic freedom requires a new financial system, and we’re building it.

The Coinbase that emerges from this will be more capable than ever to achieve our mission.

Brian

[Jon Leigh @jonleigh]

@yellowdoodle1x @SCHIZO_FREQ How much did you take and what happened?

[Jon Leigh @jonleigh]

Just reserved a sexy bit of beef for Christmas from @MeatMattersltd! Festive priorities 🐮🔥

[Jon Leigh @jonleigh]

@Finumus1 @poshfrocks @MrMalky Have a look at the great cholesterol con by malcolm kendrick

[Jon Leigh @jonleigh]

Genuinely sad to see the demise of Cazoo! Having bought my car through them, can attest the service they offered was exceptional. Could have been the future of the used car market... Hopefully we'll see someone else follow in their footsteps soon, just with better cost management

[Jon Leigh @jonleigh]

@aidThompsin Fairly sure you can claim it back, was mentioned on sw trains twitter. Will be doing the same.

[Jon Leigh @jonleigh]

Had a great panel discussion at CTO Craft Con yesterday! We spoke about the importance of selecting the right tech and how it's often not about the actual technology. Thanks for having me @CTOCraft

[Jon Leigh @jonleigh]

First time back in the gym after a bilateral hernia repair 6 weeks ago. Feels good to be back (although it's going to hurt tmrw 😬)

[Jon Leigh @jonleigh]

My teams book club is taking a philosophical turn...

[Jon Leigh @jonleigh]

New batch of coffee in from my local coffee roaster, copper coffee. Superb as always 👌

[Jon Leigh @jonleigh]

@GergelyOrosz We've been refining an approach along these lines, one that we call Consultative QA. I've written about it here: https://t.co/w7gYOcbd7R

[Jon Leigh @jonleigh]

@napoleon21st @coookwithchris This. Our blender still has a yellow tinge, even after soaking in vinegar and bicarb!

[Jon Leigh @jonleigh]

@mbateman They want to feel in control. Let them have this one, it'll make the times when you need to control them much easier

[Jon Leigh @jonleigh]

True leadership in action! My money is on the Boks depending their title and taking the trophy again!

[Jared Wright @jaredwright17]

🇿🇦 Siya Kolisi taking the lead off the pitch, too!

Comes to defend Manie Libbok's kicking. 🙌

#RWC2023

[Jon Leigh @jonleigh]

Using this to get glasto tickets!

[Ryan McEntush @rmcentush]

little alpha in public markets, so gigabrains are frontrunning taylor swift tickets

sry swifties

[Jon Leigh @jonleigh]

@simonsarris I’m more buoyant about twitter than ever. It’s at the forefront of free speech, is actively challenging the established media and the for you feed finally works. It also doesn’t have any competitors 🤷‍♀️

[Jon Leigh @jonleigh]

@Nic749 @MeatMattersltd It’s amazing! Very easy to dial the temperature up or down and will stick on a given temperature for hours. It’s a big upgrade on the original kettle and whilst expensive, imo is worth the money if you’re going to use it a lot. Get one 😄

[Jon Leigh @jonleigh]

First time going low and slow with some beef short ribs from @MeatMattersltd. Served up with salsa verde and buttery veg for mothers day, delicious!

[Jon Leigh @jonleigh]

The simple joy of a slice of salted butter on a water biscuit 😋

[Jon Leigh @jonleigh]

@simonwhite87 I sometimes wonder how many startups have been prematurely killed due to microservice evangelisation. As an industry, we’re pretty good at shooting ourselves in the feet