iWorld
Tinder Launches More Genders for Users in India
MUMBAI: Tinder, the world’s most popular app for meeting new people, today announced its latest update: Tinder will now support more ways to express gender identity, by giving users the ability to add information about their gender outside the binary. Users now have the opportunity on the platform to identify as any gender that they believe represents them most authentically.
Until now, Tinder users in India were offered only two options when selecting their gender: man or woman. For users who identified as transgender, gender neutral or somewhere between or outside the gender binary, that limitation posed an obvious challenge. Tinder now empowers users to just be themselves by adding 23 new genders to the list. From the ‘Edit Info’ screen, users can now type any word that describes their gender identity. Tinder users may also choose to display their gender on their profile.
Tinder instituted an advisory panel comprising The Humsafar Trust, India’s oldest LGBTQ organization working for the health and human rights of the community since 1994
and LGBTQ Author and inclusion advocate, Parmesh Shahani who helped guide local development of the update, help be more inclusive with indigenous gender identities and to reflect cultural nuances of the community in India.
Ashok Row Kavi, Chairperson, The Humsafar Trust, said, “Tinder’s new initiative celebrates the diversity and pluralism and truly represents the idea of India. For numerous Indians who identify as trans and non-binary, this will be their chance to be their true selves online and in person. It gives us great pleasure to be associated with Tinder on this bold move.”
“I am proud to be a part of this. While this is an important effort by itself I believe that the ripple effects will be tremendous,” said Parmesh Shahani. He adds, “I hope it enables Tinder users to express their authentic selves or to express themselves more freely, but beyond that the hope is that this act will empower other institutions, whether government or private to widen the framework with which they approach gender and offer their employees as well as customers a range of gender possibilities.”
Taru Kapoor, GM, Tinder India said, “Inclusivity, acceptance and individuality are core values of Tinder. Users are best to assert their own identity, and our latest update gives them the opportunity to decide how to express themselves authentically. I think it is vital to be reflective of our time, and it has been a good year in India for gender, sexuality and personal autonomy. What has been crucial is the assistance provided by The Humsafar Trust and Parmesh in customising the update for our community and including indigenous identities. Ensuring users feel like their true selves while using the platform is paramount. Everyone is welcome on Tinder.”
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.
