Report: Smith & Tinker Lays Off 30 Percent

Bellevue, WA-based gaming company Smith & Tinker has cut about 30 percent of its staff, according to a report in VentureBeat. The company has confirmed an unspecified number of layoffs. Led by co-founders Jordan Weisman and Joe Lawandus, Smith & Tinker had some 50 employees as of August, when it released its flagship game, Nanovor. The startup was founded in 2007 and has raised $29 million in venture funding from investors including DCM, Vulcan Capital, Foundry Group, Alsop Louie Partners, and Leo Capital Holdings.

Author: Gregory T. Huang

Greg is a veteran journalist who has covered a wide range of science, technology, and business. As former editor in chief, he overaw daily news, features, and events across Xconomy's national network. Before joining Xconomy, he was a features editor at New Scientist magazine, where he edited and wrote articles on physics, technology, and neuroscience. Previously he was senior writer at Technology Review, where he reported on emerging technologies, R&D, and advances in computing, robotics, and applied physics. His writing has also appeared in Wired, Nature, and The Atlantic Monthly’s website. He was named a New York Times professional fellow in 2003. Greg is the co-author of Guanxi (Simon & Schuster, 2006), about Microsoft in China and the global competition for talent and technology. Before becoming a journalist, he did research at MIT’s Artificial Intelligence Lab. He has published 20 papers in scientific journals and conferences and spoken on innovation at Adobe, Amazon, eBay, Google, HP, Microsoft, Yahoo, and other organizations. He has a Master’s and Ph.D. in electrical engineering and computer science from MIT, and a B.S. in electrical engineering from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.