Layoffs News: DailyHunt parent company VerSe to cut 350 jobs amid major transformation, to invest more in AI

News aggregator DailyHunt's parent company VerSe is set to lay off 350 employees in what the company called a ‘strategic transformation’ to overhaul its working methods.

In a press release on late Saturday, VerSe said that it will streamline approximately 350 roles within the company. The layoffs will be made in May, it said.

“To build a more future ready organization where talent is cross leveraged across business units and resources are directed towards growth segments, the company will streamline its workforce by approximately 350 roles this month,” VerSe said, revealing that it will be undergoing a structural alignment.

AI stealing jobs?

VerSe said that it is undergoing the transformation to build an “agile, focused, and future-ready organisation”, stressing on its plans to invest more in artificial intelligence.

The move, the company said, “is a part of a well thought through comprehensive plan and is geared at accelerating investments in AI, streamlining operations, and taking concerted actions to align the company’s strategy and structure to its long-term priorities and growth.”

One of the main focus of VerSe going forward will be AI-led transformation, which comes at the same time it announced the layoffs.

As part of integrating AI in its workflow, VerSe will focus on the automation of several manual processes to increase operational efficiency “in alignment with global trends.”

VerSe targets better profitability in current fiscal

The company justified the imminent layoffs by saying that the operational and structural changes with a focus on growth drivers have been made to direct the company towards profitability by the end of the current fiscal.

Growing revenue and profitability both organically and through strategic acquisitions will position the company effectively towards going public in the future, it said.

VerSe projected over 75 per cent revenue growth in FY25, outpacing the anticipated 10-15 per cent growth rate of the Indian digital advertising sector.

“The company's growth strategy is bolstered by investments in AI-led tools and platforms, such as the AdTech platform NexVerse.ai, the subscription service Dailyhunt Premium in partnership with Magzter, and VerSe Collab, a platform for managing influencer campaigns,” a VerSe spokesperson said.

In FY24, VerSe saw a 51 per cent reduction in EBITDA burn, decreasing from ₹1,448 crore in FY23 to ₹710 crore, through cost management measures, including reductions in service and marketing expenses. Total revenue for FY24 stood at ₹1,261 crore.