THE HOT STORY

Zuckerberg blames Meta layoffs on capital spending

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has said the Facebook parent firm's planned layoffs are the consequence of increased capital spending for AI, and in comments to staff at a company town hall on Thursday he declined to rule out further job cuts. “We basically have two major cost centers in the company: compute infrastructure and people-oriented things," Zuckerberg said. "If we’re investing more in one area to serve our community, then that means we have less capital to allocate to the other. So that means we ⁠do need to take down the size of the company somewhat." He added: "Getting everyone internally to use AI tools and getting to do the work more efficiently is not the thing that's driving layoffs."

Reuters

WORKFORCE

New jobless claims drop to lowest in over 50 years

The Labor Department reported on Thursday that new jobless claims in the seven days to April 25th fell 26,000 from the week prior to a seasonally-adjusted 189,000, well below the 212,000 expected among economists polled by the Wall Street Journal. The four-week moving average of new filings fell 3,500 to 207,500, while the total number of claims for unemployment benefits, reported with a one-week lag, declined 23,000 to 1.79m. According to High Frequency Economics, this week’s number for new jobless aid applications was the fewest since September of 1969. “There is nothing to worry about in this report. YET!,” wrote Carl Weinberg, the group's chief economist, commented. “At some point, elevated energy costs and prices for materials will cause firms to lay off marginal workers to protect profit margins.”

HIRING

LinkedIn AI hiring products set to generate $450m sales

Microsoft-owned LinkedIn says its hiring products using agentic AI ‌are set to generate $450m in sales in the coming year. The social network's systems work by having an AI agent take instructions from a human recruiter and then sifting through LinkedIn profiles to find the best ones for follow-up. "Recruiters told us half their day was low-value work, so we made a bet on understanding ⁠their pain to get our solution right," said LinkedIn CEO Dan Shapero.

Reuters

HEALTH & WELLBEING

PwC will drop cover for weight-loss drugs from employee health plans

PwC has told U.S. staff it will no longer cover the cost of weight-loss drugs for employees unless they have diabetes, citing the need to manage rapidly rising costs.

Financial Times

TECHNOLOGY

IRS expands AI use amid staffing concerns

The IRS is rapidly expanding its use of artificial intelligence (AI), with 126 active applications across audits, fraud detection and taxpayer services, up from just 10 in 2022. AI is improving efficiency and enabling large-scale analysis of tax data, particularly targeting high-risk individuals and complex cases. However, the expansion comes alongside significant workforce cuts, with staff numbers falling by about 25% in 2025. Officials warn the lack of a clear workforce strategy and reduced specialist capacity could undermine AI deployment, raising concerns about the agency’s ability to sustain and effectively manage its growing reliance on advanced technology.

PYMNTS.com

CORPORATE

Slack sues Microsoft over Teams bundling

Salesforce-owned Slack is suing Microsoft in a U.K. lawsuit over alleged anticompetitive practices relating to its Teams app. A Slack spokesperson said the lawsuit was "because Microsoft's practices harmed ⁠competition, using tying and bundling of Teams to limit customer choice." A Microsoft spokesperson said the case lacks merit, adding: "Slack's lackluster growth, compared to Zoom and Teams, was based on inferior capabilities when COVID-19 hit in 2020, and had nothing to do with Microsoft."

Reuters

LEGAL

Supreme Court appears skeptical of lawsuit against Cisco

The Supreme Court appears likely to back Cisco's push to dismiss claims it was complicit in China's torture of members of the Falun Gong religious minority. A lawsuit claims the tech firm helped Beijing create an internet censorship program, known as the Golden Shield, that enabled the government to monitor and harm members of the movement, which is prohibited in China. The New York Times says the court’s decision could have broader implications for lawsuits seeking to hold companies liable for international human rights abuses.

Bloomberg Law

RISK

Treasury cuts ties with Booz Allen over IRS data leak fallout

The U.S. Treasury has canceled all contracts with Booz Allen Hamilton after losing confidence in the firm’s ability to vet and manage contractors, following a major IRS data leak in which a former Booz employee disclosed confidential tax records of high-profile individuals between 2018 and 2020. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the decision reflects concerns over inadequate screening and safeguarding of sensitive taxpayer data, despite the incident occurring on government systems, while Booz Allen defended its role, noting it cooperated with the investigation and does not store IRS data, with the terminated contracts previously totaling $21m in obligations.

FedScoop

INTERNATIONAL

Nationwide strike in Greece to disrupt transport today

A nationwide 24-hour strike will disrupt transport across Greece today as unions observe International Workers' Day. The Panhellenic Seamen's Federation (PNO) has organized the strike, which affects all vessels and halting ferry services. PNO General Secretary Manolis Tsikalakis emphasised the importance of labor rights, linking current demands to historical struggles for the eight-hour workday. Other maritime unions will join the action, advocating for improved wages, safety measures, and better public services. Transport disruptions will include halted rail services and limited bus operations throughout the day.

GreekCitytimes

PM Wong to speak at May Day Rally on helping workers adapt

Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong will discuss how workers can adapt to evolving job roles due to AI and new technologies during his May Day Rally speech today. In a post on X yesterday, Wong said: “With AI and new technologies, job roles will evolve. But one thing does not change: our commitment to support every worker - to adapt, upskill, and move forward with confidence.” Wong's recent Budget included a record $154.7bn to support businesses and promote AI skills through initiatives including the National AI Council and SkillsFuture courses. He has assured that AI adoption would not lead to the growth of joblessness.

Straits Times

Nigeria's TUC demands 50% tax cut for workers, manufacturers

The Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) has urged the federal government to implement a 50% tax reduction for workers and manufacturers to alleviate economic pressures caused by rising fuel prices. In a communiqué from their National Executive Council meeting, TUC leaders highlighted the need for government intervention to stabilise fuel prices and improve local refining capacity. Comrade Festus Osifo, TUC President-General, said: "Government must take urgent steps to prevent further increases in the pump price of petroleum products." The Congress also expressed concerns over security issues and the impact of casualisation in the private sector.

Zawya EN

Goldman Sachs stops bankers using Anthropic’s Claude in Hong Kong

Goldman Sachs has stopped its bankers in Hong Kong from using Anthropic’s AI models, in the latest indication of how the emerging technology is roiling U.S.-China relations.

Financial Times

OTHER

Early environmental metal exposures may have lasting effects on brain health

Researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai report that early-life exposure to common environmental metals may influence brain development and behavioral health more than a decade later. The study, published in Science Advances, is the first to combine naturally shed baby teeth with advanced brain imaging to pinpoint specific weeks during pregnancy and infancy when the developing brain appears most vulnerable to environmental exposures. “Baby teeth provide a unique biological record of early life,” said Manish Arora, BDS, MPH, PhD, the Edith J. Baerwald Professor and Vice Chair of the Department of Environmental Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. “They give us a window into the fetal and early postnatal environment at a weekly temporal resolution, something no other technology can do.”

Mount Sinai

NPR / National Public Radio

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