Today, Yuga Labs announced a restructuring. Below is the email CEO Daniel Alegre sent to the organization.

Hello Yuga Team,

I have some difficult news to share. After a recent period of thoughtful consideration, I have decided that we need to restructure the Yuga Labs teams. The implication of these changes is that a number of roles have been eliminated across the company, impacting some of your colleagues.

It is always hard to see many talented colleagues depart, but I want to be transparent with you on the rationale behind the changes. 

When I joined Yuga six months ago, my first priority was to lay out a clear vision that focused our team on the creative storytelling and community building that is at the core of Yuga. I also went on a listening tour to understand every aspect of our business and ensure that the makeup of our team and our projects were aligned with our goals. I realized very quickly that there were a number of projects that, while well-intentioned, either spread the team too thin or required execution expertise beyond our core competencies.  

As part of this, I’ve spent a long time with the leadership team looking inward and being realistic about two core questions: Are we taking on too much ourselves, and should we gain from the strength of third parties?  

What I heard most over the course of these conversations was that to create truly amazing experiences that matter to our communities and our business, we need to place our bets on fewer key initiatives and team up with complementary external partners to make these experiences happen. We celebrated a number of initiatives and events this year like Dookey Dash, Twelvefold, Made by Apes, the Punks Legacy Project, brand activations with Gucci and BAPE, and IRL events in NY, Korea, Tokyo, Austin, Singapore, and Paris. And let’s not forget MAYC’s 2nd birthday in Miami. Yet, alongside these wins, there have been a few rocky rollouts, particularly in our gaming execution, because we learned along the way that we weren’t optimized to build and manage everything in-house, nor should we be.  We also know we need to make greater progress with the development of Otherside.

As we looked more thoroughly at the projects that no longer align with what we now consider our core priorities, we knew this shift would affect our organizational design.

Last week, our leadership team gathered in New York to define and solidify updated core competencies. This is what we will be focusing on moving forward:

• We are committed to our communities, and we will continue to amplify and support their growth and engagement with our brands.
• We are going all-in on our Otherside strategy. Every ongoing digital connection will be part of and reinforce the Otherside evolution. This encompasses gaming, entertainment experiences, interactive social connections, and a range of unique initiatives coming from Eric Reid and team.
• While we laser focus our internal development efforts on those things only Yuga can do, like our web3 platform components and Otherside, we will continue to build complementary long-term partnerships that will help us realize our mission to build culture on the blockchain. 

Our Communities: 

• BAYC: Our teams will support the expansion of “Made by Apes'' and other projects aimed at empowering club members worldwide, as we continue to cultivate the culture and creativity of our community. We understand the importance of “early BAYC vibes” and are committed to keeping that energy moving forward, starting with ApeFest Hong Kong in a few weeks. Finally, we’ll also be launching a major, versatile, and continuous gaming experience scheduled for 2024 and beyond. 
• CryptoPunks: The team will dedicate their resources to solidifying and celebrating the crypto art legacy of the collection through education (including the upcoming book), improving and streamlining the Punks app, and continuing to create engaging experiences. 
• Meebits and 10KTF: These teams will become part of Otherside. This does not mean that the creative storytelling opportunities for these brands have disappeared. On the contrary, there is so much to accomplish in Otherside, and Meebits is a collection built for the metaverse, while the 10KTF shop will finally have a permanent home. 

Otherside

The Otherside team will build out new gaming experiences into 2024 through third-party partnerships. 2024 will be the year we will showcase the Otherside platform with live experiences that our communities and partners will love.

We are aware that we haven't been building in public as often as we had wanted, and to address that, we're going to start providing regular development updates in the coming weeks.

Partnerships: 

We have announced a steady drumbeat of partnerships recently, including Hadean, Bad Rhino, OMA3, Accelbyte, and Faraway.  There will be more to come. I believe that these partnerships are crucial to our rapid and effective growth, allowing us to concentrate on what we do best. We will also continue to build out our brand partnerships, including with partners such as Gucci, A Bathing Ape, and more to extend new engagement opportunities within the communities we serve.

What comes next? 

Above all else, my top priority during this transition is to ensure that those leaving Yuga are treated with the respect and gratitude they deserve. We are committed to providing them with all the support they need. Our transition package includes generous severance, COBRA coverage, and assistance in finding new job opportunities. Meetings with US-based impacted employees have been calendared for today and we are currently conducting meetings with impacted employees, their department heads, and our People Team. 

I understand that any role changes or eliminations can be tough, and it's natural to have strong emotions, whether you're directly affected or not. Saying goodbye to colleagues is never easy, especially when it involves talented and dedicated team members who have played a significant role in shaping Yuga. I want to express my heartfelt thanks for your hard work and dedication. We will do everything we can to help those impacted through this transition, and we will provide more details during an upcoming All Hands meeting. Keep an eye on your calendars for that.

It's a challenging time, not only for our industry but also for the global economy. We must stay focused on our core strengths as we continue to create unique, engaging experiences for the broader Yuga audience. The restructure today impacts US team members, and we are actively reviewing the impact on our international teams.

I strongly believe that Yuga will forever change how consumers and brands interact. We have built a powerful brand by granting IP rights, something that was considered impossible in the media and entertainment industry until we came along. We are breaking new ground, and we are building this company together. I want to express my gratitude for your unwavering passion for our communities, partners, and investors.

Warmest regards,

Daniel