Flock Safety to Cut About 18% of Workforce, Roughly 270 Jobs, Amid Surveillance Backlash

Flock Safety plans to cut about 18% of its employees, roughly 270 jobs, people with direct knowledge of the plans said Thursday, as the AI surveillance camera and license-plate reader maker faces mounting opposition from communities and lawmakers. Impacted employees will leave at the end of the month. The company declined to comment. The cuts follow a voluntary buyout program announced in September. Atlanta-based Flock, founded in 2017, employs about 1,500 people and has raised over $950 million from venture investors, including a $275 million round in March led by Andreessen Horowitz at a $7.5 billion valuation. Flock operates about 120,000 AI-powered cameras across 49 states and serves more than 4,800 law enforcement agencies and nearly 1,000 businesses. A Reuters/Ipsos poll found 38% of Americans support Flock cameras in their communities versus 47% opposed. Florida banned automated license plate readers from state highways in September, and the company faces a privacy lawsuit in Virginia.