October 31, 2026
Dropbox cuts about 200 jobs globally; 57 in San Francisco, WARN filing shows
Dropbox eliminated about 200 roles, roughly 9% of its global workforce, on October 28, 2026, according to a Form 8-K the company filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and an email co-CEO Ashraf Alkarmi sent to employees the same day. A California WARN notice records 57 of those jobs at the company's San Francisco headquarters, effective November 18.
Dropbox said in the filing that the reduction is meant to align its investments and team structure with its top product and growth priorities and support its long-term strategy. The company estimates total cash spending of approximately $27 million to $33 million, primarily severance payments, employee benefits and related costs, and expects to recognize $20 million to $25 million of incremental expense, most of it in the fourth quarter of 2026, with the remainder in 2027. The same filing said third-quarter results should come in line with or above prior guidance; full third-quarter results are due November 5.
In his email, published on the Dropbox blog, Alkarmi said the cuts fall across Engineering, Product, Design and general and administrative teams, and that for most affected employees, October 28 was their last day. Departing employees are eligible for sixteen weeks of pay from the announcement date, plus one additional week for each completed year at the company; packages outside the U.S. follow local practice and legal requirements.
Chief Technology Officer Ali Dasdan steps down effective November 18, the same date the San Francisco WARN notice takes effect. Under a separation agreement disclosed in the filing, Dasdan receives a pro-rata bonus of $515,000 and a lump-sum cash payment of approximately $1.3 million. Alkarmi's email says Dasdan decided to move on and will focus on a smooth transition through November.
The cuts come months into a leadership transition: co-founder Andrew Houston stepped down as chief executive in May, and Alkarmi, a company insider, succeeded him.
The 57 San Francisco jobs are the only Dropbox filing in US Layoff Radar's 46-state WARN data; about 140 of the roughly 200 roles do not appear in any U.S. WARN filing tracked here. Dropbox was not the only San Francisco layoff that week: customer-service startup Front cut 53 workers. The New York Post reports that tech companies have revealed plans to eliminate nearly 14,500 Bay Area positions in 2026, according to California WARN filings.
One gap in the record: the memo says most affected employees' last day was October 28, while the WARN notice lists November 18 as the effective date. Neither the filing nor the memo explains the difference.