iWorld
National Poker Series India to return this year
Mumbai: The National Poker Series India, hosted on PokerBaazi, is expected to commence its third edition in 2023. The National Poker Series India has had tremendous success in the last two editions. The overwhelming participation was not just restricted to the metros; even tier two and tier three cities saw an impressive number of players playing and winning the medals thereby proving the growing popularity of poker across India.
The company said that the tournament’s year-on-year growth has been an eye-opener for many, with the 2021 edition registering 83,000 entries and last year’s edition drawing as many as 96,000 entries. The National Poker Series, since its inception, has glorified the heroes of Indian poker and recognises the skill involved in this mind sport.
In the last two editions, Maharashtra (94) and New Delhi (82) have been leading the medal tally, with Rajasthan (46) and Uttar Pradesh (41), as well as Haryana (39) completing the top five. While states have been giving each other a run for their glory, individual players have also ensured that they give each other cut-throat competition.
In 2021, Mohd. Azhar Tak (3) – Rajasthan, Ankit Wadhawan (3) – Punjab, Kritagya Sharma (3) – New Delhi lead the medal tally. Whereas in 2022, Shagun Jain (6) – Rajasthan, Dhaval Doshi (4) – Maharashtra and, Rohit Begwani (4) – Rajasthan completed the podium positions with an even higher count of medals.
Poker, the company added, is fast capturing the minds and imaginations of people all over India, including prominent influencers and podcasters. People are posting on social media platforms about how the game is fun and thrilling and at the same time teaches so many valuable life lessons. Poker has transcended boundaries in the west, whereas India is now fast catching up to the idea of poker as a sport. With the tournament likely to see more participation, even from the hinterlands of India, the National Poker Series will continue with its tradition of giving an opportunity to its podium finishers to compete in the world’s largest international poker tournament—in Las Vegas, Nevada.
iWorld
Meta plans 8,000 layoffs in new AI-led restructuring wave
First phase from May 20 may cut 10 per cent workforce amid AI pivot.
MUMBAI: At Meta, the future may be artificial but the cuts are very real. The social media giant is reportedly preparing a fresh round of layoffs, with an initial wave expected to impact around 8,000 employees as it doubles down on its artificial intelligence ambitions. According to a Reuters report, the first phase of job cuts is slated to begin on May 20, targeting roughly 10 per cent of Meta’s global workforce. With nearly 79,000 employees on its rolls as of December 31, the move marks one of the company’s most significant workforce reductions in recent years.
And this may only be the beginning. Sources indicate that additional layoffs are being planned for the second half of the year, although the scale and timing remain fluid, likely to be shaped by how Meta’s AI capabilities evolve in the coming months. Earlier reports had suggested that total cuts in 2026 could reach 20 per cent or more of its workforce.
The restructuring comes as chief executive Mark Zuckerberg continues to steer the company towards an AI-first operating model, committing hundreds of billions of dollars to the transition. Internally, this shift is already visible: teams within Reality Labs have been reorganised, engineers have been moved into a newly formed Applied AI unit, and a Meta Small Business division has been created to align with broader structural changes.
The trend is hardly isolated. Across the tech sector, companies are trimming headcount while investing aggressively in automation. Amazon, for instance, has reportedly cut around 30,000 corporate roles nearly 10 per cent of its white-collar workforce citing efficiency gains driven by AI. Data from Layoffs.fyi shows over 73,000 tech employees have already lost jobs this year, compared with 153,000 in all of 2024.
For Meta, the move echoes its earlier “year of efficiency” in 2022–23, when about 21,000 roles were eliminated amid slowing growth and market pressures. This time, however, the backdrop is different. The company is financially stronger, generating over $200 billion in revenue and $60 billion in profit last year, with shares up 3.68 per cent year-to-date though still below last summer’s peak.
That contrast underlines the shift underway. These layoffs are less about survival and more about reinvention. As Meta restructures itself around AI from autonomous coding agents to advanced machine learning systems, the question is no longer whether the company will change, but how many roles will be left unchanged when it does.
