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title: "Jonathan Ross (Groq founder) avoided layoffs by asking engineers to take pay cuts for equity — \"Groq Bonds\" — Stuff That Spins"
description: "Groq was three weeks from running out of cash. Founder Jonathan Ross was staring at a list of names his leadership team had put together for layoffs — and real…"
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date: "2026-07-06T01:57:01+00:00"
modified: "2026-07-06T12:03:42.682154+00:00"
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# Jonathan Ross (Groq founder) avoided layoffs by asking engineers to take pay cuts for equity — "Groq Bonds"

**Source:** Unknown  
**Published:** July 6, 2026  
**Original:** https://www.reddit.com/r/artificial/comments/1uok40k/jonathan_ross_groq_founder_avoided_layoffs_by/  

## On this page

- [Overview](#overview)

<a id="overview"></a>

## Overview

Groq was three weeks from running out of cash. Founder Jonathan Ross was staring at a list of names his leadership team had put together for layoffs — and realized cutting them would kill the product before it ever hit the technical milestone it needed. Instead of firing people, he pitched something else at an all-hands: keep your job, take a pay cut, take equity instead. They called it "Groq Bonds" internally — not a real bond, just salary swapped for ownership. 80% of the company opt

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