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Niantic Spatial, the tech company that remains of Niantic after it sold off its games business to Scopely last month, just laid off 68 people following the roughly $3.5 billion transaction.
This news was spotted by Game Developer via a California WARN Act report, shows that at least 68 individuals are losing their jobs effect May 20, 2025. CEO John Hanke confirmed the news by sharing an email distributed to employees today.
In it, he said that the layoffs came as a result of Niantic Spatial needing to "operate as a startup organization, focused on the road ahead", for which "some roles would not be required given our new focus." It's worth noting that Niantic was formed in 2010 under Google as Niantic Labs, and became independent in 2015.
"These decisions are never easy; they in no way reflect the individuals’ performance, and we understand their impact on people’s lives," he continued. "We deeply appreciate the talented individuals who helped us get here and for their many contributions, and will support them as they transition to new opportunities."
These layoffs impact Niantic Spatial, which is the portion of Niantic that was spun off following the sale of Niantic's games business – including Pokemon Go, Monopoly Go!, and other games – to Scopely last month for over $3.5 billion. Niantic Spatial's focus is on using geospatial artificial intelligence to develop new technology and products, something Niantic was already been doing for a while both outside of and with the help of its games.
Niantic Spatial was funded with $250 million of capital, $200 million from Niantic's balance sheet and a $50 million Scopely investment. Upon its announcement, the company said its intention was to "accelerate and scale even more rapidly".
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. You can find her posting on BlueSky @duckvalentine.bsky.social. Got a story tip? Send it to [email protected].
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