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Surveillance company Flock Safety is parting ways with about 18% of its staff amid privacy backlash

Published: 4 sourcesTürkçe

About 18% of Flock Safety’s roughly 1,500 employees, or some 270 people, will leave the maker of AI-powered license plate reader cameras at the end of October, Reuters reported on October 8, citing people with direct knowledge of the plans. The departures follow a voluntary buyout program Flock launched in September; WIRED reported at the time that the company wanted to shrink its staff to avoid mandatory layoffs. Flock declined to comment to Reuters, but spokesperson Paris Lewbel told TechCrunch: “This was a voluntary program, not a layoff.” The company has not tied the move to privacy criticism; that link comes from news coverage. Florida banned license plate readers on state highways in September.

Sources

  1. Reuters (The Star üzerinden), “Exclusive-AI surveillance startup Flock Safety to cut several hundred jobs amid backlash, sources say”, About 18%, roughly 270 staff, per unnamed sources, (thestar.com.my)
  2. TechCrunch, “Surveillance company Flock cuts staff as privacy backlash grows”, Spokesperson: a voluntary program, not a layoff, (techcrunch.com)
  3. IBTimes UK, “Flock Workers Have Seven Days to Accept ‘Generous’ Severance as Customers Cut Ties With the $8B Surveillance Firm”, Summary of WIRED's internal-memo report, (ibtimes.co.uk)
  4. Wikimedia Commons, “File:Flock Safety ALPR Camera (53833285849).jpg”, Image: Tony Webster, CC BY 2.0, (commons.wikimedia.org)

About this story

This story was posted on Instagram by @jarrus.tech on Oct. 13, 2026.

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This story in Turkish: Gözetim şirketi Flock Safety, gizlilik tepkileri ortasında çalışanlarının yaklaşık %18’iyle yollarını ayırıyor

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