Morale at one of the most reviled companies in America appears to be at an all time low.
Flock Safety, the company infamous for selling AI-powered license plate readers to police departments and cities, is reportedly planning to lay off 18 percent of its workforce. Increasingly reviled by Americans across the political aisle, Flock cameras have proliferated across the country, bringing controversy and outraged citizens in their wake. Now, those pressures may be catching up with Flock.
The cuts, which are expected to impact 270 current Flock Safety employees, will take effect at the end of October according to sources close to the decision who spoke with Reuters. Three weeks ago, WIRED reported that Flock had begun an employee buyout program with generous severance packages as increasing numbers of its workforce grew discontent amid mounting opposition from outside the company. It is unclear how many of the employees in these upcoming layoffs are leaving voluntarily as a part of that program. Flock currently employs about 1,500 workers.
Flock backlash has been surprisingly bipartisan. Despite appealing to a law-and-order style of politics, the company has been banned from Florida highways, with Governor Ron DeSantis saying, “I don’t want to have this become a surveillance state.” The company was cut off from state funding in Texas as Governor Greg Abbott courts voters of his own ahead of November’s midterm elections. Pennsylvania Democrat Josh Shapiro, another gubernatorial incumbent, has similarly panned Flock as a tool for law enforcement and said he would “welcome” legislation banning the cameras. California‘s Los Angeles Police Department declined to renew its Flock contract. Meanwhile, pundits ranging from Hasan Piker to Tucker Carlson have railed against them, and vigilantes have gone viral on social media platforms for dismantling or stealing Flock cameras with plenty of support from commenters.
