Osso VR to lay off 67 people at corporate HQ

Dive Brief:

Osso VR will lay off 67 people at its corporate headquarters in San Francisco, the company said in a regulatory filing Thursday.
The company developed a virtual reality surgical platform for training and assessment and had raised more than $100 million to date. Osso had 180 employees in March 2023.
Osso plans to complete the layoffs by May 27. The cuts affect a wide range of positions, with art and illustration roles particularly badly affected.

Dive Insight:

Osso VR CEO Greg Born wrote in an emailed statement the changes were intended to “enhance our operational efficiency and better align our resources with the market's demands.”

He added that the company is optimizing its product offerings and reinforcing its dedication to its partners and their goals.

“We are confident that these adjustments will not only strengthen our position as a key player in the healthcare industry but also amplify the value we deliver to our customers,” Born said.

Osso disclosed the layoffs and the roles affected to meet its obligations under the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act. The notice lists the number of people with various job titles who will be laid off, revealing that 30 people leaving the company have titles related to art and illustration.

In 2022, Osso raised a $66 million Series C financing round. The company planned to use the money to accelerate its work to expand access to surgical education for and hire “top-tier talent to bring high-fidelity surgical training experiences to additional specialty areas.”

The March 2022 round came as digital health funding was entering a slump from which it is yet to recover. As access to money has tightened, private and public companies alike have tried to reduce spending and switched their focus from growth to profitability.

A sign that Osso may be rethinking its strategy emerged in February, when the company named Born as its CEO. Justin Barad, who co-founded Osso, became chief strategy officer. Osso highlighted Born’s “additional expertise in operational and strategic growth.”