Business Insider Cuts 21% of Workforce Amid Digital Media Shakeup

New York, NY – May 30, 2025 — Business Insider has laid off 21% of its workforce, joining a growing number of digital media companies undergoing significant restructuring. The cuts were announced in an internal memo from CEO Barbara Peng, who cited the increasing impact of artificial intelligence tools on consumer behavior as a major factor.

In the memo, Peng stated that while the company now earns twice as much revenue per website visit compared to two years ago, around 70% of its business remains sensitive to traffic fluctuations. As AI-driven platforms increasingly offer automated news summaries, fewer readers are visiting original news sites, eroding a key source of revenue for digital publishers.

“This was a hard decision, but a necessary one,” Peng wrote, acknowledging the difficult nature of the layoffs while emphasizing the need to adapt to a rapidly evolving media environment.

The move underscores a wider industry trend as media outlets grapple with declining traffic, ad revenue challenges, and the growing dominance of AI technologies in content delivery and consumption.