Overview
- Klarna raised about $1.37 billion at $40 a share for a roughly $15 billion IPO valuation, then opened at $52 for a market value near $19.7 billion.
- CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski said the firm "over indexed" on AI-driven savings and is course-correcting to focus on productivity and product quality for customers and merchants.
- The company cut staff from about 5,000 to 3,800 as it leaned on automation, with a chatbot handling work equal to 700 agents and reducing resolution times to two minutes from 11.
- Klarna says it is hiring again with more than two dozen roles open, keeping AI central while emphasizing service improvements after savings like a $2 million switch from Salesforce proved immaterial to investors.
- AI remains embedded across operations and marketing, with leaders citing a 600% jump in asset output, a push toward $1 million in revenue per employee, and new tools through a deal with Google.