The wave of closures was triggered by the Italian company Lottomatica, which shut down its entire branch in Serbia in mid-March, with 348 employees dismissed in a single day.
This was followed by layoffs at the company Block, and then the closure of Zendesk’s office in Belgrade, where 60 people were employed. According to employees’ announcements, Playstudios is also expected to cease its operations here.
The reasons cited for such a sudden and simultaneous shutdown of as many as four companies from one of the most dynamic sectors of the Serbian economy range from business optimisation and increased use of artificial intelligence, to the reduction and abolition of incentives for the industry, as well as rising labour costs.
Milan Šolaja, Director of the Vojvodina ICT Cluster, says that according to available data, 348 employees of Lottomatica/PWO lost their jobs, Zendesk (formerly Novi Sad-based Tymeshift) laid off around 60, while the number for Playstudios has not yet been officially confirmed but is estimated at several dozen.
“Block is a global story – 4,000 layoffs out of more than 10,000 employees, with the number in Serbia unknown. In total, roughly speaking, between 450 and 550 jobs have been lost within about ten days,” Šolaja adds.
Each case had its own logic. Lottomatica represents a typical post-acquisition consolidation. They acquired SKS365 for €639 million, the Belgrade team worked for two years on platform migration, and was disbanded as soon as the job was completed. Artificial intelligence is present in their corporate strategy, but it is not the immediate reason for these layoffs, he says.
Zendesk acquired Novi Sad-based Tymeshift in 2023, and is now closing that office due to a combination of the acquisition cycle and automation pressures in the customer support sector.
“Block is a structural case – strong financial results, revenue growth of 24 per cent annually, yet they are still laying off 40 per cent of their workforce and publicly stating that AI is changing the way the company is run. The market responded with a 24 per cent rise in share price, which may be the most striking detail, as efficiency achieved through workforce rationalisation is becoming a valued strategy,” he notes.
When it comes to the dominant reasons, Šolaja says that AI is real pressure, not an excuse. Customer support, quality assurance, data migration and similar roles are already highly susceptible to automation. This effect is accelerating. On the other hand, the abolition of incentives for newly settled individuals, in his view, cannot be a direct cause of these layoffs.
Marko Vučetić, Director of the Serbian IT Association, said that the withdrawal of these companies is not surprising, noting that warnings had been issued since last year – when incentives were abolished – that companies would reassess whether to continue operating in Serbia. He added that there are concerns this may not be the final list, and that more companies could follow, judging by the current sentiment in the IT sector.
(Dnevnik, 26.03.2026)