iWorld
Amazon MX Player announces the new season of the Munawar Faruqui starrer – First Copy
MUMBAI: After a breakout debut that left fans buzzing and critics applauding, First Copy is all set to return with a new season later this year on Amazon MX Player, Amazon’s free video streaming service. Launched with Munawar Faruqui’s much-talked-about entry into scripted drama, the show quickly became a fan favorite thanks to its gripping narrative, nostalgic ’90s energy, and a performance that proved Faruqui’s versatility beyond the mic.
Picking up from the suspenseful cliffhanger of the debut season, where Arif’s empire came crashing down, the upcoming season will dive deeper into the consequences of his rise, his fall, and his relentless drive to reclaim what was lost. Will the man who built his kingdom on charisma, chaos, and cinema find a way back? The new instalment of First Copy promises new twists, higher stakes, and an Arif the audience hasn’t seen before. The series boasts a powerhouse cast featuring Munawar Faruqui, Krystle D’Souza, Gulshan Grover, Saqib Ayub, Ashi Singh, Meiyang Chang, Inam Ul Haq, and Raza Murad — and has cemented itself as one of Amazon MX Player’s most talked-about titles of the year.
Reflecting on the show’s overwhelming reception and his return, Faruqui shared, “First Copy was a big leap for me, my first acting project, and I honestly didn’t expect this kind of love. I think audiences really connected with Arif with all his imperfections, and that’s been humbling. He is intense, passionate, and constantly looking for meaning in chaos. But his story? It’s just getting started. The new season will reveal a whole new side of him and I can’t wait for audiences to see what’s next.”
With fans already dissecting every frame of the video drop, the countdown has officially begun. First Copy still has plenty of pages left to turn, and fans won’t have to wait too long for the new season, which will premiere on Amazon MX Player later this year.
First Copy is available to stream on Amazon MX Player for free, available through its own app, on the Amazon shopping app, Prime Video, Fire TV, Smart TVs, and Airtel Xtreme.
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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.
