Roblox Lays Off Employees in China Amid Operational Structure Evaluation

Amidst operational restructuring, iconic gaming company reduces workforce by 15 in Shenzhen and US branches targeting its China platform LuoBu, while confirming long-term commitment to Chinese market.

Roblox Corp has laid off 15 employees in China and the United States following an evaluation of the operational structure at its LuoBu (Roblox China) platform, focusing on its unique business and operational needs.
Roblox China, launched in 2020 in collaboration with Tencent, had to ensure that any maps created in-game would respect China's territory and not tamper with 'historical facts' or use the names or images of national leaders.
In January 2022, Roblox delisted LuoBuLeSi (the Chinese version of Roblox) to continue working on the project, following regulatory challenges and user-generated content issues in alignment with Beijing’s censorship rules and cross-border data regulations.
Despite the layoffs and removing the LuoBuLesi app shortly after launch, Roblox remains committed to its long-term vision and plan for the LuoBu platform in China, affirming its long term focus on the Chinese market.
The layoffs came not long after Roblox reduced its talent acquisition team by 30 members and initiated a return to office policy at its headquarters in San Mateo.