Jun 12, 2026
Opendoor [NASDAQ:OPEN], the San Francisco-founded company that allows people to buy and sell homes for cash through its platform, is the latest tech corporation to announce substantial layoffs — but, unlike others, the cuts will not affect any of its U.S. workers.
CEO Kaz Nejatian announced on Wednesday that leadership has decided to shutter the firm’s offices in India, where, until recently, nearly 250 workers had been based. In an X post, he wrote: “Our customers are in America, and that's where our operational work belongs.”
Advertisement
In that post, he also shared his message to staff. In that message, he noted that, behind the scenes, some jobs previously held by team members in India — which were located across the cities of Chennai, Hyderabad and Bengaluru under the leadership of Indian operations head Venkata Machavarapu — have already been brought back to U.S. soil over recent months.
This latest step is being billed as the finalization of that process, prompted by the introduction of a new strategy.
“For years, Opendoor built a large team in India to handle manual workflows across fragmented systems,” the memo further explained. “As we’ve unified these systems and have hired small AI-native customer-facing teams throughout the U.S., we need all this operational work to be done in-person and close to our customers.”
The company had opened new sites in India, including a “cutting-edge development center,” as recently as June 2024.
New mandate puts AI first
The move is in line with the company’s new vision, titled Opendoor 2.0, which Nejatian, a former Shopify executive, introduced soon after he took the reins in September 2025.
The primary aim of the comprehensive revamp is to return the brand to profitability through “transacting with more sellers, strengthening our unit economics through better pricing and resale speed, and driving operational efficiency by being ruthless on expenses,” as the newly-appointed CEO wrote last fall.
Advertisement
Opendoor’s big pivot has included refocusing on tech — “We are refounding Opendoor as a software and AI company,” reads a release on the subject from November — including through automating some backend executions and customer-facing features with the use of AI.
These include, for customers, reducing buyer-seller friction during a sale with a repair co-pilot that identifies what renovations a given home may need, and providing competitive market analyses that take into account details as specific as whether portions of a property are usable for certain purposes. On the software side, algorithms are taking over aspects of home pricing, inspections, assessments and deals, as well as lead generation and other marketing work.
On Nejatian’s 11th day at the helm, he expressed the urgency for the company to “become AI native incredibly quickly,” telling employees quite bluntly that “Starting today, the first line in everyone’s job expectation is simply this: default to AI.”
Must Read
- You can now build wealth like a landlord for as little as $100 — and no, you don't have to chase down rent or take 3 A.M tenant calls
- Goldman Sachs used to hoard prime real estate deals for the ultrarich. Two ex-analysts just opened the door for $250
- Robert Kiyosaki begs investors not to miss this ‘explosion’ — says this 1 asset will surge 400% in a year
Join 250,000+ readers and get Moneywise’s best stories and exclusive interviews first — clear insights curated and delivered weekly. Subscribe now.
AI and outsourcing both put pressure on US jobs
While we wait to see how severe the dreaded AI workforce replacement ends up being in reality, outsourcing remains a concern for many workers, particularly in the IT and customer service fields.
This particular set of layoffs takes place at the nexus of both, serving as a potential example of how AI may transform the practice of outsourcing, potentially usurping the cost-effectiveness that once made moving jobs offshore so attractive.
Opendoor has seven U.S. offices, including in Miami, Atlanta, Tempe, Ariz., Seattle and its home base of San Francisco. It also has a regional location in Toronto.
You May Also Like
- Dave Ramsey warns nearly 50% of Americans are making 1 big Social Security mistake — here’s what it is and the simple steps to fix it ASAP
- Thanks to Jeff Bezos, you can now become a landlord for as little as $100 — and no, you don't have to deal with tenants or fix freezers. Here's how
- Millionaires under 43 are reshaping investing — just 25% of their portfolios are in stocks. Here’s where their money is going
- Robert Kiyosaki issues grim warning for baby boomers. Many could be ‘wiped out’ and homeless ‘all over’ the country. How to protect yourself now
Becky Robertson is a senior staff reporter with Moneywise and a lifelong writer. Along with years in the journalism industry at outlets such as blogTO and Quill & Quire, she's participated in writing residencies at the Banff Centre and Writing Workshops Paris. With 33 countries visited, she finds travel to be one of her greatest inspirations.
