eNews
OneIndia.com launches bilingual web platform OneArabia.me
Mumbai: OneIndia.com, a leading vernacular web destination in India that attracts an impressive audience of over 200 million monthly users across its network sites, announces its strategic expansion into the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region with the launch of
OneArabia.me. More than just a content hub, this innovative bilingual platform, available in both Arabic and English, is designed to cater to the cultural and interest-based needs of readers in the MENA region. The digital platform aims to bridge gaps and foster cultural exchange by providing a space for diverse voices, perspectives, and stories from across the region, encouraging dialogue and meaningful engagement.
To ensure a robust presence in the MENA market, the OneArabia project is being spearheaded by BMEG ME, a Dubai-based firm. Under the leadership of BMEG ME director and general manager Shekhar Iyer, a comprehensive go-to-market strategy is being implemented to introduce the new bilingual platform to the MENA audience.
Speaking about the launch of OneArabia, BMEG ME director and general manager Shekhar Iyer stated, “OneArabia is set to redefine the digital media landscape in the MENA region. Its focus on diverse and curated content is a bold move, much like choosing courage over comfort. It’s a calculated risk, but one that we believe will pay off by making OneArabia a go-to web platform for readers.
Moreover, partnering with BMEG ME gives OneArabia a strategic edge. This partnership affords OneArabia a deeper understanding of the local market dynamics, thereby enabling us to provide advertisers with more targeted solutions. The valuable insights we derive from this association will also shape OneArabia’s future content strategy, ensuring our offerings remain relevant and engaging for the readers across the MENA region.”
OneIndia CEO Ravanan Natarajan, expressed his excitement and vision for this new venture, stating, “The launch of OneArabia is not just another milestone in OneIndia’s journey, but a significant leap marking our first international venture. As we step into the vibrant digital landscape of the MENA region with our partners at BMEG ME, we are driven by a vision to overcome language barriers, enhance cultural dialogue, and provide a platform that caters to a diverse range of interests. We are particularly pleased to elevate Jobo Kuruvilla to business head, international markets. His over a decade of experience in vernacular digital web content will be invaluable as we continue on our growth trajectory. This platform will not only add value for our readers but also offer unique opportunities for advertisers.”
As part of the content strategy, OneArabia offers a rich selection of content spanning multiple sectors including regional & international news, business, technology, lifestyle, sports, automotive, travel, and more. Whether you’re an Entrepreneur seeking critical insights, a Tech Pro keen on staying updated with the latest trends, a travel connoisseur looking for captivating destinations, or a motorhead on the trail of the latest automotive updates, OneArabia has something for everyone.
Further enhancing the user experience, the bilingual web platform is powered by OneIndia and utilizes advanced machine learning and WISE, an in-house developed progressive generative AI, which is being widely adopted by publishers and marketers alike. This technology allows OneArabia’s editorial team, spread across MENA and South Asia, to curate and deliver custom content that aligns with the individual preferences and interests of the diverse reader base.
OneIndia’s business head for international markets Jobo Kuruvilla, outlined a bold vision for OneArabia: “We’re not just another news portal. We’re the pacesetters. By leveraging the rich linguistic diversity of the MENA region, we’re reaching out to a broader audience with curated content in both Arabic and English. Our aim? To build an informed, engaged community.
Our global footprint offers unique opportunities for advertisers, setting us apart from traditional platforms. But it’s more than just about advertising – it’s about creating a comprehensive resource that promotes meaningful engagement.
OneArabia is the latest bilingual platform in the MENA region, and we’re inviting everyone to come and explore what we have to offer. Through our platform, we’re promoting a symbiotic relationship where everyone – from users to advertisers – benefits. The key to this approach is to maintain a balance that keeps all participants content, creating a harmonious ecosystem where mutual exchange of value leads to collective engagement.”
eNews
AI could replace half of entry-level white-collar work: Anthropic study
Hiring in AI-exposed occupations fell 14 per cent post-ChatGPT
SAN FRANCISCO: From lamplighters to elevator operators, waves of technology have repeatedly erased once-common jobs. Now artificial intelligence may be poised to do the same for large swathes of professional work.
A new study by Anthropic suggests that while AI tools are technically capable of performing many knowledge-economy tasks, real-world adoption lags far behind that potential, at least for now.
The report, Labor market impacts of AI: A new measure and early evidence, by Maxim Massenkoff and Peter McCrory, introduces a new metric called “observed exposure,” which compares what AI systems could theoretically perform with what they are actually doing in workplaces.
Using professional interaction data from Anthropic’s Claude model, the researchers found that AI could theoretically cover a wide share of tasks in business, finance, management, computing, mathematics, legal services and office administration. Yet current adoption represents only a small fraction of those capabilities.
That gap between potential and reality reflects a mix of legal barriers, technical limitations and the continued need for human oversight, the study said. But the authors suggest those constraints may prove temporary as the technology matures.
Warnings about AI’s impact on white-collar employment have been growing. CEO Dario Amodei has previously argued that AI could disrupt as much as half of entry-level professional work, while Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman has suggested that most professional tasks could eventually be automated within 12 to 18 months.
Highly educated workers most exposed
Contrary to common assumptions, the study finds that workers most exposed to AI are not those in manual labour but highly educated professionals. The most exposed group is 16 percentage points more likely to be female, earns on average 47 per cent more than the least exposed group and is nearly four times as likely to hold a graduate degree.
Occupations including computer programmers, customer service representatives and data entry clerks are among the most vulnerable to automation.
Yet even in highly exposed fields, AI is not yet replacing jobs at scale. The researchers cite routine medical tasks, such as authorising prescription refills, as examples that AI could technically perform but is not widely observed doing in practice.
In the report’s visual framework, actual AI usage (the “red area”) remains far smaller than the theoretical “blue area” of possible tasks. Over time, the researchers expect the red area to expand as adoption deepens.
At the other end of the labour market, roughly 30 per cent of occupations show virtually no AI exposure. Roles such as cooks, mechanics, bartenders and dishwashers still depend heavily on physical presence and manual work that large language models cannot replicate.
Hiring slowdown rather than layoffs
So far the clearest labour-market signal is not mass layoffs but a slowdown in hiring within AI-exposed occupations.
According to the study, job-finding rates in those sectors have fallen about 14 per cent since the arrival of generative AI tools such as ChatGPT compared with 2022 levels. A separate study cited by the authors found a 16 per cent drop in employment among workers aged 22 to 25 in AI-exposed roles.
Recent labour data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics also point to softer hiring conditions, with employers shedding 92,000 jobs in February and unemployment rising to 4.4 per cent.
Some companies have already linked layoffs to automation. Jack Dorsey said his payments firm Block recently cut nearly half its workforce in part because AI tools allow smaller teams to operate more efficiently.
Not everyone is convinced the technology is solely responsible. Critics such as Marc Benioff have accused some firms of “AI washing”, using automation as a convenient explanation for cost-cutting measures.
Still, the researchers warn that the longer-term risk is a potential “white-collar recession”. If unemployment in the most AI-exposed occupations were to double, from about 3 per cent to 6 per cent, it would mirror the scale of labour-market disruption seen during the Global Financial Crisis.
For now, the shift may simply mean fewer entry-level openings. Some young workers are staying longer in existing roles, switching sectors or returning to education rather than entering AI-exposed fields.
