Layoffs at Uber; Astrobase eyes fresh fundraise

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Uber will cut thousands of jobs in ‌a restructuring move. This and more in today’s ETtech Top 5.

Uber is eliminating about 3,300 roles globally, roughly 10% of its workforce, as part of a restructuring designed to reduce management layers and redirect spending towards the ride-hailing, delivery, and robotaxi businesses.

CEO announces cuts: In a company-wide email to employees, CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said the company’s growth has created unnecessary layers, coordination overhead, and fragmented ownership. The changes are intended to make Uber “simpler and faster” by flattening its organisational structure.

“I’m sure many of you have felt that you spend too much time “aligning” rather than building, shipping, or serving customers. To improve this, we have reduced roles primarily focussed on coordination, and have clarified the remit of the coordination roles that remain,” the email read.

Management layers will be reduced by about 20%, with some managers moved to individual contributor roles.The number of very small teams (one or two members) will be cut by nearly half.The company is reducing the number of employees who sit more than seven layers below the CEO.Core engineering, science, and delivery groups are being streamlined.

Remote work: Khosrowshahi also said only about 1% of employees will be allowed to remain fully remote going forward, as part of a broader push to bring more staff back to key offices.

Astrobase in talks to raise $40-50 million led by Peak XV at $300 million valuation

Devakumar Thammisetty (left) and Neeraj Khandelwal, founders, Astrobase

Bengaluru-based spacetech startup Astrobase is in talks to raise $40-50 million in a new round led by Peak XV Partners, valuing the company at $250-300 million, people aware of the matter told us.

Astrobase is developing two-stage reusable launch vehicles that can carry payloads of 3-10 tonnes.It is aiming for its first orbital launch in 2028.The talks follow the startup’s recent unveiling of Everest, an 80-tonne-class, 800 kN full-flow staged combustion (FFSC) rocket engine, which Astrobase claimed was India’s first such engine.

About the company: Founded in 2024, Astrobase was started by former ISRO propulsion scientist Devakumar Thammisetty and Neeraj Khandelwal, an IIT Bombay alumnus and cofounder of cryptocurrency exchange CoinDCX.

In June, the startup was selected for the IN-SPACe (Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre) Technology Adoption Fund to develop its indigenous 800 kN LOX-methane FFSC engine.

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Rapid food delivery startup Swish to raise $20-25 million led by Bertelsmann India: Sources

L-R: Saran S, Aniket Shah and Ujjwal Sukheja, founders, Swish

Bengaluru-based food delivery startup Swish is finalising a $20-25 million round led by Bertelsmann India Investments, two people aware of the matter told ET.