As generative artificial intelligence (AI) continues to threaten millions of jobs, tech companies globally are now sacking employees even during the holiday season. They had spared the workers in the festive seasons of 2021 and 2022, owing to the global meltdown, and started layoffs only in the first month of the new year.
According to layoff.fyi, a website that tracks tech sector job cuts; 1,178 tech companies have laid off 260,771 lakh employees in 2023 globally, with more than 36,000 being sacked in India.
In terms of sector, retail-tech, consumer-tech, and fintech are the ones which laid off the most employees this year, citing the global macroeconomic conditions.
Which Major Indian Tech Companies Have Done The Maximum Sacking?
Paytm has laid off over 1,000 employees, giving the reason for reducing costs and realigning its business.
Social media platform ShareChat, owned by Bangalore-based Mohalla Tech, asked 15% of its workforce to go as part of strategic restructuring.
Adda247, a Google-backed edtech platform, has laid off 250-300 employees across verticals while Byjus has sacked 4,000-5,000 employees, in a “business restructuring exercise.”
The homegrown quick-grocery delivery startup, Dunzo has already sacked nearly 400 employees so far this year, in two job-cut rounds.
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Is AI Going To Be The Employee Of The Year In 2024?
Google fired 12,000 people this year, the number being the highest in the company’s history, as ‘AI performs better than they expected.’ And now, reports say that as AI has started automating ad sales, another 30,000 may lose their jobs at Google.
AI is linked to layoffs in the industry that created it. The displacement of jobs in this industry where workers once seemed invincible, is rather shocking.
Who is at risk from GenAI? Elon Musk says that artificial intelligence will get humans to a point where “no job is needed.” AI technology is incentivizing entrepreneurs to restructure and redefine the jobs we do.
“It took us 30 mins to integrate commoditized ChatGPT, see tangible benefits, and realise that more than 20% of jobs could be automated. Now, imagine what more intelligent tools could lead to?” tweeted Nithin Kamath, founder and CEO of Zerodha, India’s largest stock brokerage firm.
Governments Race To Regulate AI Tools
These rapid advances in AI are complicating governments’ efforts to agree to laws governing the use of the technology.
The issue of AI replacing people is becoming serious in India, which is a labour-intensive economy. India’s place on regulating AI has swung between extremes-from no regulations to regulation based on a “risk-based, no-harm” approach.
Experts have been emphasising the need for legal frameworks and the importance of human-AI collaboration to find sustainable solutions to these challenges, as India continues to strengthen its digital transformation.
Image Credits: Google Images
Feature image designed by Saudamini Seth
Sources: The Economic Times, Mint, CNN
Find the blogger: Unusha Ahmad
This post is tagged under: AI, Artificial Intelligence, GenAI, Generative AI, Dunzo, Adda247, ShareChat, Paytm, Google, jobs
Disclaimer: We do not hold any right, copyright over any of the images used, these have been taken from Google. In case of credits or removal, the owner may kindly mail us.
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