Bizarre email error by US payment giant as layoff letter includes cartoon duck

Stripe made an unusual error during its corporate restructuring, accidentally attaching a cartoon duck image to layoff emails. The company is laying off 300 employees but also plans significant expansion in 2025.

In a bizarre twist during its corporate restructuring, Stripe accidentally attached an image of a cartoon duck to emails notifying employees about layoffs. The company is reducing its workforce by 300 people, or 3.5% of its total staff, while also planning for significant expansion in 2025. The unusual email blunder, which included a cartoon duck image titled "US-Non-California Duck," quickly became the centerpiece of Stripe's layoff announcement.

A Stripe spokesperson acknowledged the mistake, with Chief People Officer Rob McIntosh sending a follow-up apology for the "notification error" and any confusion it may have caused. To make matters worse, some of the emails contained incorrect termination dates, adding to the administrative mishap.

The layoffs primarily impact the product, engineering, and operations teams. Despite the workforce reduction, McIntosh reassured employees of the company's growth trajectory, forecasting a 17% increase in headcount, bringing the total number of employees to approximately 10,000 by the end of the year.

The company has now implemented two significant workforce reductions, with the most recent one following a 14% cut in November 2022, which affected around 1,120 employees. The duck-themed email error brings an unexpected, almost surreal twist to what is usually a solemn corporate procedure, showcasing the often human—and at times comical—side of communication during challenging organizational transitions.