CRM supplier Optimove joins AI layoff wave
Table of contents
- Optimove will lay off approximately 10% of its global workforce as part of a wider AI-led restructuring.
- Chief executive Pini Yakuel says the cuts are being made from a position of financial strength, not distress.
- The move follows Optimove’s recent acquisition of gamification specialist Smartico and lands amid a broader wave of AI-linked layoffs across tech.
Optimove, the CRM marketing platform used by hundreds of iGaming and sports betting operators, is cutting approximately 10% of its global workforce.
Founder and chief executive Pini Yakuel confirmed the decision in a LinkedIn statement yesterday, describing it as a deliberate shift toward an AI-led way of operating rather than a response to financial difficulty.
Cutting from strength
Yakuel said the move reflects a broader shift in what it takes to build and lead a software company in the AI era. Adding AI features to a product is no longer enough, he argued; the strongest companies will rethink how they work, build, and structure their teams.
Pini Yakuel, Founder and CEO of Optimove, said:
“We are acting from a position of strength, with a clear view of the company we need to become in order to lead in the years ahead.”
He stressed that Optimove remains financially healthy and growing, serving some of the world’s leading brands, and framed the timing of the cuts as deliberate rather than reactive.
Yakuel also addressed staff who are leaving the company directly in the same statement. Pini Yakuel said:
“You helped shape this company. We are grateful for what you gave, and we will do our best to support you through this transition.”
Impact on operators
Optimove ranks among the most widely used CRM and player engagement vendors in the casino and sportsbook sector. The restructuring lands two months after the company acquired Smartico, the gamification-led CRM specialist, in April.
The two companies are continuing to operate independently following the deal, with Smartico’s leadership retaining control over its own product roadmap. The acquisition was Optimove’s clearest signal yet that AI-driven personalisation, rather than headcount, is becoming the basis of competition in iGaming CRM.
Optimove employs more than 500 people across offices in New York, London, and Tel Aviv, according to the company’s own figures. It has been named a Visionary Leader in Gartner’s Magic Quadrant for Multichannel Marketing Hubs, and is used by operators across casino, sportsbook, and lottery verticals.
Yakuel sought to reassure clients directly. Pini Yakuel said:
“This change is about making Optimove faster, sharper, and even more innovative.”
He added that remaining staff would get more investment in AI tools and training to help shape the next version of the company.
Part of a trend
The announcement adds to a string of workforce reductions across gaming and betting this year. FanDuel cut hundreds of jobs in its sportsbook division in June. Penn Entertainment trimmed 75 roles in its interactive unit weeks earlier.
Supplier-side and platform providers have also cut deep this year. IGT eliminated about 700 positions, roughly 10% of its global workforce, after merging with Everi Holdings. Chief executive Hector Fernandez described the cuts as structural rather than performance-related.
Lottomatica dismissed 348 employees at PWO, its Belgrade subsidiary formed after the company’s 2024 acquisition of SKS365.
Some cuts have been tied to strategic pivots rather than cost-cutting alone. Underdog laid off more than 125 employees, over 20% of its workforce, in February, as it shifted away from traditional sports betting toward prediction markets.
Optimove’s case differs from many of these. It is a technology supplier whose own product is marketed to operators as an AI tool, rather than an operator simply cutting costs under pressure.
For operators and suppliers that depend on Optimove’s platform, the immediate question is whether the restructuring disrupts account support or product roadmaps during the transition.
As more software vendors test how far AI can shrink headcount without slowing growth, Optimove’s move offers an early marker for how the iGaming supply chain itself may be reshaped by the same technology it sells to operators.
he coming months, as the cuts take effect and new AI tools roll out internally, will show whether Optimove’s bet on a leaner, AI-led structure delivers the speed and innovation Yakuel has promised, or simply trims cost from a fast-growing but increasingly competitive CRM market.
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