iWorld
Josh partners with Germany’s international broadcaster Deutsche Welle TV to explore international content
Mumbai: Josh, India’s fastest-growing and most engaged short-video app has entered into a one-year strategic partnership with Deutsche Welle, popularly known as DW, Germany’s leading international broadcaster to provide high-quality content to users on Josh in an engaging short-video format. Through this partnership, DW aims to bolster its reach across Bharat with news and informational content, leveraging the Bharat-centric platform that Josh is.
Speaking on the partnership, Josh’s Head of Creator and Content Ecosystem Sunder Venketraman said, “We are looking forward to our partnership with DW TV, as we strive to leverage Josh’s reach and deep engagement with Bharat to bring to the users of Bharat news and infotainment from a global perspective. Through this partnership, we aim at empowering our users with the knowledge and global awareness using engaging formats and narratives while also ensuring to meet the local language content needs of our audience.”
Commenting on the collaboration, DW’s Distribution Manager – DW in Asia Daniel Schulz and DW Distribution Representative for India, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and Bangladesh, Jaya Oberoi said: “At Deutsche Welle, we aim to produce versatile content which is not only entertaining and educative but a conversation starter. Our partnership with Josh presents us with a unique opportunity to connect to a much younger and vibrant audience in India. The timing couldn’t be better as we are planning to expand our bouquet on regional languages with DW’s flagship programs in the coming months. We are excited to be joining hands with Josh, in our journey to distribute DW videos to the heart of India.
As DW looks at significantly expanding its presence in India, the partnership with Josh enables DW to engage more meaningfully through their content thus making news more informative and engaging. The collaboration further elevates the objectives of both brands as they aim to cater to the demand for high-quality infotainment content in a format that is snackable and engaging while also meeting the local language needs of the users. The international content from DW will be available to users in English and Hindi.
DW will be bringing information and content on diverse topics such as current affairs, climate change, history, health, and unique human interest among others, from around the world to users on Josh.
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.
