Yuga Labs, the company behind Bored Ape Yacht Club, recently announced that it has laid off a portion of its staff as part of a larger restructuring effort. The news came from a blog post published by the company on October 6th.
In this blog post, Yuga Labs CEO, Daniel Alegre, explained the reasoning behind the decision, stating that the need for a shift in strategy was driven by underwhelming launches in certain areas, particularly within the company’s gaming initiatives. As a result, a number of roles have been eliminated across the company, impacting some employees.
As part of the restructuring, Yuga Labs plans to delegate certain activities to external third-party companies, while internal development teams will focus on web3 efforts and Otherside, the company’s metaverse platform. Alegre emphasized the company’s commitment to going “all-in” on the Otherside strategy, with plans to launch new gaming experiences by 2024 and form long-term partnerships to enhance Yuga Labs’ efforts.
While the company undergoes these changes, Alegre revealed that Bored Ape Yacht Club’s “Made by Apes” program will be expanded. This program acts as a licensing model and community showcase for fan creations. Additionally, a gaming experience tied to the Bored Ape product line is expected to launch in 2024. Yuga Labs will also continue to manage CryptoPunks, an NFT series it acquired in May 2022, by improving and streamlining the Punks app. Alegre also mentioned that a book about the NFT collection is currently in progress.
Despite Yuga Labs’ involvement in some of the largest NFT collections, it is important to note that the NFT market has recently experienced a decline in activity, despite generating a record-breaking $55 billion in revenue in 2022. While the company did not specifically mention market or revenue trends that led to the staff reductions, it is likely that it has been impacted by this broader market shift.
In conclusion, Yuga Labs’ recent decision to cut staff as part of a larger restructuring reflects the company’s need to adjust its strategy and refocus its efforts on the Otherside platform and gaming experiences. While certain initiatives like Bored Ape Yacht Club and CryptoPunks will remain active, Yuga Labs is taking steps to adapt to the evolving NFT market and position itself for future success.
