The AI whirlwind in Silicon Valley has also begun to seriously impact the cryptocurrency industry. Last week, news that a major cryptocurrency exchange announced a large-scale reduction of about 14% of its employees, approximately 700 people, has shocked the entire industry.

There are two major trends behind this decision. One is the rapid evolution of AI technology. The CEO of a large trading platform stated that AI is fundamentally changing how companies operate and that restructuring is necessary to lead this new era. The other is the ongoing volatility of the cryptocurrency market. With a continued bear market, immediate adjustments to cost structures are deemed unavoidable.

According to documents filed with regulatory authorities, this personnel reduction is expected to incur severance and related costs of approximately $50 million to $60 million. This amounts to more than one-seventh of the company's roughly 5,000 employees.

What is even more noteworthy is that this company is seriously moving toward transforming into an AI-native organization. Plans include forming a small team responsible for managing AI agents (digital bots) that handle programming tasks, and even reducing management layers. It is also said that human managers will be assigned new roles, such as working closely with teams.

This trend is not limited to Coinbase alone. In February this year, fintech company Block cut about 40% of its employees, approximately 4,000 people. Meta also announced plans to cut about 10% of its staff (8,000 people) and close 6,000 job openings. Microsoft has similarly offered early retirement programs to many long-term employees to support AI investments.

It is clear that the technology industry is at a major turning point. The rapid improvement in AI code generation capabilities is directly impacting software engineers who are central to digital businesses. The CEO of a large trading platform described this reduction as a "turning point" and stated that the greatest danger is doing nothing, which reflects the overall atmosphere in Silicon Valley.

Interestingly, this company positions this as a proactive measure rather than a reactive one. It is a strategic move to utilize the market downturn to streamline the organization and prepare for the next economic cycle. The stock prices of cryptocurrency companies are likely to move in line with this industry restructuring trend.

Under pressure from both AI and market conditions, how will cryptocurrency companies including Coinbase reorganize? The process is likely to be a microcosm of the broader transformation happening across the tech industry.