The Squarespace layoffs are a clear sign of how fast website building is changing. On November 2, 2026, Squarespace confirmed it is cutting about 19% of its staff. That is around 300 people, and most of them work in product and engineering.

I'm Nitin, and I run web and AI project delivery at Debugged Pro. A lot of our work starts with a client asking, "Can't I just build this myself with AI?" This news makes that question louder. So here are the verified facts, and what agencies and businesses in India and the USA should do next.

Image credit: Bing Guan/Bloomberg via Getty Images, as used by The Verge in its report on the Squarespace layoffs.

What Happened at Squarespace

The Verge first reported the cuts. Squarespace spokesperson Jeff Seedman then confirmed them to TechCrunch, which reported the Squarespace job cuts on Monday.

Here is the company statement in full: "Squarespace is restructuring its organization and reducing its global workforce by approximately 19%, representing around 300 employees. The changes are intended to simplify how we operate, sharpen our priorities and enable the company to move faster as we position Squarespace for its next phase of growth."

Squarespace has about 1,800 employees. It was founded in 2004 and went public in 2021 at a $10 billion valuation. Private equity firm Permira took it private in 2024.

The Squarespace layoffs at a glance

Size: About 19% of the global workforce, or around 300 jobs.
Teams hit: Mostly product and engineering, per the CEO's memo.
Severance: At least 16 weeks of base pay, plus more weeks based on tenure.
Benefits: Continued until May 2027.
Extras: Career coaching, help for staff on work visas, and departing staff can keep their laptops.

What the CEO Memo Says

CEO Anthony Casalena sent a company-wide memo on Monday. Business Insider published the full Squarespace CEO memo, and it is worth reading if you run a web team.

Casalena wrote: "The way we need to work is changing faster than at any point in our history, and our operating model must adapt for the modern era." He added that this means "smaller teams, more player coaches, and a simplified organizational structure."

He also said the cuts are "not an exercise designed to reach a financial target." Instead, he framed them as reshaping the company around how it needs to work.

The line that stood out to me was this one. Technology, he wrote, "has changed in ways we could not have anticipated before the past 12 months." He also said the product and industry are "undergoing a fundamental change."

Is AI behind the Squarespace layoffs?

This is where we need to be careful. Squarespace has not said AI caused the cuts. Some posts on the workplace app Blind linked the layoffs to a push into AI infrastructure.

The company pushed back on that. It told Investing.com: "We would not characterize the restructuring as being linked to plans to increase investment in AI infrastructure."

So the honest reading is this. The company says it needs smaller, faster teams because its industry has changed. It does not say AI took these jobs. Both things can be true at once.

Why Website Building Is Changing So Fast

TechCrunch points to a big shift. "Vibe coding" website builders now let people spin up working front-end designs from simple prompts. That has largely upended the industry, according to the report.

The money moving into this space tells the same story:

Wix bought the AI app builder Base44 for $80 million last year.
Lovable raised a $400 million Series C in August at a $13.3 billion valuation.
Google recently launched Stitch, which quickly generates user interface designs.

Squarespace is not sitting still either. It launched an AI tool called Blueprint in 2024. Blueprint builds sites and writes copy, blog posts and product descriptions. The company has also announced Forma, an upcoming AI native platform with a waitlist.

Image credit: Squarespace press image of its Blueprint AI website tool, as used by TechCrunch.

A quick timeline

Year	What happened
2004	Squarespace is founded.
2021	It goes public at a $10 billion valuation.
2024	It launches Blueprint AI, and Permira takes it private in a deal valued at about $7.2 billion.
2026	It announces Forma, then cuts about 19% of staff on November 2.

What the Squarespace Layoffs Mean for Web Agencies

Let's be practical. If a big website builder is reshaping itself around smaller teams, agencies feel the same pressure. Clients see AI builders on social media and expect faster, cheaper work.

But a quick AI draft is not a finished business website. In our projects, the slow parts are rarely the layout. They are content, approvals, integrations, SEO, speed and ongoing changes.

That gap is where agencies still earn their fee. Here is how I see the shift:

Basic brochure sites are getting cheaper. A client can now get a decent first draft in minutes.
Custom work still needs people. Payment flows, CRM links, booking systems and dashboards need real engineering.
Clients want results, not pages. Leads, sales and search traffic matter more than the number of templates you deliver.
Speed is now expected. If AI helps you build faster, clients will notice and expect it every time.

Why it matters for teams in India and the USA

Many Indian agencies build websites for small businesses in the US, UK and beyond. A good share of that work has been template-based. That is exactly the layer AI builders are going after.

For US businesses, the picture is mixed. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics outlook for web developers and digital designers still projects 5% job growth from 2025 to 2035. But it also notes that better tools and more use of AI for web development may soften that growth.

In plain words, demand is not vanishing. The type of work is changing. Agencies on both sides of the world need to move up from "we build pages" to "we build things that make you money."

A 7-Step Plan for Web Agencies Right Now

You don't need to rebuild your agency this week. But a short review now will help you avoid surprises next quarter. This is the plan we are using at Debugged Pro.

List clients on site builders. Note who uses Squarespace, Wix or similar tools, and what you manage for them.
Back up client content. Keep copies of text, images and key settings, and know the export options for each platform.
Test AI builders on real briefs. Try two or three tools on a past project. See where they save time and where they break.
Change how you price. Move from page counts to outcomes, such as a lead funnel, a store launch or a monthly growth plan.
Sell what AI can't finish. Focus on integrations, custom features, performance, accessibility and SEO.
Train your team. Teach designers and developers to use AI tools well, and to review the output with care.
Talk to clients first. Explain what AI does well and where your team adds value, before they ask.

A simple example

Say a dental clinic in Pune or Dallas wants a new site. An AI builder can produce the homepage, services page and contact form quickly. That part is now cheap.

The clinic still needs online booking linked to its calendar and reminder messages. It needs local SEO, fast load times and someone to fix things when they break. That is the work clients will keep paying an agency for.

What to Watch Next

A few things will show where this is heading:

Forma's launch. How Squarespace's AI native platform works will hint at its plans for designers and agencies.
More restructuring. Business Insider notes Squarespace joins a long list of companies cutting staff this year.
AI builder pricing. Watch how tools like Lovable and Base44 price their plans as competition grows.
Client demand. Track how many leads now ask for AI features, not just a new design.

We have seen this kind of tool churn before. Our post on the Google Jules shutdown and AI coding tools covers why agencies should avoid tying their workflow to one product.

If you want help planning custom builds that go beyond a template, our software development consulting team can review your stack and roadmap.

Key Takeaways

The Squarespace layoffs cut about 19% of staff, or around 300 jobs, mostly in product and engineering.
The CEO wants smaller teams and more "player coaches" as the industry changes.
Squarespace says the cuts are not linked to more AI infrastructure spending.
AI and vibe coding builders are pushing down the value of basic template sites.
Agencies should price for outcomes and focus on custom, integrated work.

Final Thoughts

This is a hard day for the 300 people leaving Squarespace. It is also a useful signal for everyone who builds websites for a living.

The agencies that do well next year will use AI to work faster. They will also be very clear with clients about the work that still needs skilled people.

About the Author

Nitin Kumar is the Lead Project Coordinator at Debugged Pro. He manages delivery for web, mobile and AI projects for clients in India and the USA. He writes about practical ways teams can use AI tools without losing control of time, cost or quality.