TikTok Layoffs: The Social Media Firm Fires Over 700 Employees, Says Report

TikTok Layoffs: In May, TikTok announced laying off up to 1,000 employees worldwide. These layoffs primarily affected the content and marketing departments

TikTok Layoffs: ByteDance, the parent company of the popular social media platform TikTok, reportedly laid off over 700 employees in its Malaysian division. This move is part of the company's strategy to enhance its reliance on artificial intelligence for content moderation, according to a Reuters report citing sources.

According to the report, employees primarily engaged in moderation received dismissal notifications via email. While TikTok confirmed the layoffs, it did not disclose the specific number of employees affected in Malaysia. The company anticipates a global impact and is focused on improving its moderation strategies.

“We’re making these changes as part of our ongoing efforts to further strengthen our global operating model for content moderation," a spokesperson for TikTok said Friday. 

“We are unable to give a precise figure at this time, owing to varying local employment regulation processes," the company added.

Amid heightened regulatory scrutiny in Malaysia, where social media platforms must secure an operating license by January, TikTok's layoffs come in response to a reported rise in harmful online content. In light of this, ByteDance intends to invest $2 billion in trust and safety initiatives to enhance its use of AI, which currently addresses 80 per cent of content violations.

In May, The Information reported that TikTok announced laying off up to 1,000 employees worldwide. These layoffs primarily affected the content and marketing departments.

Layoffs are becoming synonymous with the tech sector as companies grapple with difficult times. Almost every big tech company has announced significant rounds of layoffs, affecting thousands of employees around the world. From Amazon to Dell, companies have been dealing with a crash crunch amid a difficult economic situation, which is directly impacting their employees in the form of layoffs. Amazon recently announced that it will reduce the number of managers in the company by about 14,000.