Apple announces job cuts and implements ban on call forwarding, along with other top tech news of the week

Apple Inc. has made its first significant job cuts since the pandemic, laying off more than 600 employees in California. The layoffs are reportedly a result of the company’s decision to end its car and smartwatch display projects. According to filings with the California Employment Development Department, Apple filed eight separate reports to comply with the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) program.

In a related development, Apple has become one of the largest job creators in India under the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme approval in 2021. IT minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar announced that the Apple ecosystem has employed more than 150,000 people directly, with approximately 3,00,000 people indirectly employed, resulting in over 400,000 new jobs.

Meanwhile, EXL Service, a New York-based IT company, is restructuring its operations to meet the growing demand for generative artificial intelligence (GenAI). The company is cutting 800 jobs, affecting junior staff in data analytics and digital operations in the US and India, while hiring skilled workers with expertise in advanced data, AI, and generative AI.

In other tech news, the Indian government has issued a directive to e-commerce companies, including Flipkart and Amazon, emphasizing accurate labeling for certain beverage categories. Additionally, the government has ordered telecom companies to suspend USSD-based call forwarding on smartphones, effective from April 15, 2024, citing vulnerabilities to online scams and mobile phone-related crimes.