The startup world is once again debating how far founders can go in the name of “efficiency” and “startup culture.” This time, the spotlight is on fintech company Bolt and its founder-CEO Ryan Breslow. Speaking at Fortune’s Workforce Innovation Summit, the 31-year-old entrepreneur defended his controversial decision to eliminate Bolt’s entire HR department while also justifying major layoffs that affected nearly 30% of employees earlier this year.
Breslow argued that traditional HR systems were slowing the company down at a time when Bolt was trying to survive and rebuild after a dramatic collapse in valuation. Once valued at nearly $11 billion during the fintech boom, Bolt’s valuation reportedly plunged to around $300 million by 2024, according to Fortune.
“We got rid of our HR team”
Breslow did not hold back while explaining the move.
“We had an HR team, and that HR team was creating problems that didn’t exist,” Breslow said during a conversation with Fortune editorial director Kristin Stoller. “Those problems disappeared when I let them go.”
The Bolt CEO claimed the company had entered what he described as a “wartime” operating phase, where speed, execution and lean structures mattered more than large corporate management systems.
According to Breslow, traditional HR departments may work well in large, stable companies, but not necessarily inside startups fighting for survival.
“We’re back in startup mode again, and those HR professionals have really important insights when you’re in a peacetime and when you’re at a larger company,” he said at the summit.
From fintech darling to restructuring mode
Bolt was founded in 2014 by Ryan Breslow and Eric Feldman as a one-click checkout and e-commerce payments platform. Breslow famously launched the company while studying at Stanford University.
During the pandemic-era fintech boom, Bolt emerged as one of Silicon Valley’s fastest-growing startups. According to sources, Bolt reached a peak valuation of around $11 billion in 2022.
But the story changed rapidly after Breslow stepped down as CEO in 2022.
Bolt’s valuation reportedly plunged to nearly $300 million by 2024 — a collapse of almost 97%. Bolt laid off employees several times over the years as the company tried to minimise expenses and reduce overhead.
Breslow returned as CEO in 2025 and is executing a hard turnaround plan based on small, lean teams and AI.
Bolt cuts workforce, shifts to AI-focused model
Earlier this year, Bolt reportedly cut around 30% of its workforce as part of an AI-focused restructuring exercise.
According to Banking Dive, Bolt informed employees internally that it would become “leaner and more AI-centric” as product development models changed rapidly in 2026.
Breslow reportedly told employees the restructuring had become “unavoidable”.
The company now operates with roughly 100 employees, according to his comments at the summit.
HR replaced with smaller “people operations” team
While Bolt eliminated its HR department, the company did not completely remove employee support functions.
Breslow said Bolt has now shifted to a smaller “people operations” structure that mainly handles training and employee resources.
In an earlier LinkedIn post, the CEO had written: “HR is the wrong energy, format, and approach. People ops empowers managers, streamlines decision-making, and keeps the company moving at lightning speed.”
At the Fortune summit, he further criticised what he described as a workplace culture built around “complaining” rather than execution.
“We need a group of people who are very oriented around getting things done, and there is just a culture of not getting things done and complaining a lot,” he said.
Four-day workweeks and unlimited PTO removed
Breslow also suggested that Bolt’s earlier workplace culture had become too relaxed during its high-growth years.
According to Fortune, the restructuring involved removing several employee-friendly policies, including:
Four-day workweeks
Unlimited paid time off
The CEO argued that many employees had become too comfortable during the company’s rapid expansion phase.
“There’s a sense of entitlement that had festered across the company,” Breslow said, adding that many workers “weren’t actually working hard”.
He claimed most of those employees eventually “had to be let go”.
Silicon Valley debate around startup culture intensifies
Breslow’s remarks are already prompting broader discussion in the tech and startup space.
Several US technology companies, over the past two years, have eliminated jobs, levelled organisational charts and forced higher production upon their workforces as venture investment dried up and the bottom line demanded higher margins.
But Bolt’s approach stands out because of how openly the company’s CEO criticised HR systems and workplace flexibility policies.
The episode also highlights a growing divide in Silicon Valley between founders pushing for intense “survival mode” startup cultures and employees demanding stronger workplace protections, flexibility and people management systems.
For Bolt, however, the restructuring appears to be part of a broader attempt to rebuild credibility after one of the steepest valuation collapses seen in the fintech sector in recent years.
Priyanka Roshan is a business writer and assistant editor at the NewsX website who tracks everything from stock market swings and corporate earnings to personal finance trends and policy shifts. Known for turning fast-moving business developments into sharp, reader-friendly stories, she combines speed, accuracy, and a data-driven approach to break down complex financial news for everyday audiences.
With over 9.5 years of newsroom experience, Priyanka has worked with leading media organisations, including Moneycontrol, Times Now, and Ping Digital, covering diverse beats such as business, politics, technology, auto, travel, sports, and the world. From live breaking news desks to SEO-led digital storytelling, she specialises in creating engaging content that keeps readers informed without overwhelming them.
