Flock Is Paying Workers to Quit as Cities Dump Its License Plate Cameras Over Privacy Abuses

WIRED (Paresh Dave and Dhruv Mehrotra, 18 September 2026) reported that Flock Safety emailed staff on Friday announcing a voluntary employee separation program. TechCrunch (Anthony Ha, 19 September 2026) carried the same scoop.

This is a voluntary buyout program described in that internal email. It is not a confirmed mass layoff, not a sale of the company, and not a shutdown of the camera network. Flock did not immediately comment to WIRED.

Applications opened Friday and run through 2 October. Acceptance notices go out 9 October. Most accepted employees leave by 29 October, though Flock may keep some people one to three more months.

Flock expects to grant buyouts to the majority of workers who apply. People familiar with the program, who were not authorized to speak publicly, told WIRED a significant number of the startup's roughly 1,500 employees may try to leave. One of those people said that without buyouts, Flock almost certainly would have to lay off some staff.

The email called the package the "most generous" Flock has ever offered, roughly double prior severance. Offers sit in the tens of thousands of dollars, plus several months of healthcare and a two-year window to exercise stock options, longer than a typical resignation.

April funding valued Flock at more than $8 billion. The company has raised about $1.2 billion in venture capital. Dropped and unextended municipal contracts risk revenue goals, and camera vandalism raised unexpected expenses.

Some employees have speculated about selling parts of the business. That remains chatter, not a completed deal.

One advocacy group identified 93 city and county governments that cut ties with Flock in August alone. Overall in 2026, roughly three times as many local governments have dropped Flock compared with the prior five years. Officers have been accused of using the system to track romantic partners. Florida and Texas have stopped using the cameras.

CEO Garrett Langley told the All-In podcast last month that the biggest damage from the backlash has been internal morale. Flock has also been expanding AI investigative tools that go beyond plate reads.

Related surveillance tape includes hackers stealing Flock camera software, Paris prosecutors probing smart glasses used to film women, and the US military disabling ad trackers.

City councils still paying Flock should decide this month whether to exit or rewrite the contract, and staff who want the package should apply by 2 October knowing majority acceptance is expected but not guaranteed.