TikTok has made around 500 employees redundant as it moves from human to AI moderation.
The news came from anonymous sources and was first reported by business portal The Malaysian Reserve. It has since been confirmed by ByteDance, the Chinese owner of the social media platform.
TikTok has already hit the news this weekwith 14 attorneys general bringing lawsuits against it for “prey[ing] upon young people’s unique psychological vulnerabilities” to drive hits.
Automated Moderation
The job losses are predominantly reported to be in Malaysia and from among the content moderation operations team.
Reuters reports that “80% of guidelines-violating content [is] now removed by automated technologies,” and TikTok is pushing for more for improved efficiency.
A TikTok spokesperson said in a statement: “We’re making these changes as part of our ongoing efforts to further strengthen our global operating model for content moderation.”
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Tighter Regulatory Measures
The news of the cuts come as ByteDance faces mounting pressure to address the mental health impact of its algorithm on children.
The attorneys general from 14 states have banded together to launch a lawsuit against ByteDance, accusing it of causing harm to children and teenagers.
California attorney general, Rob Bonta, wrote in a statement: “TikTok intentionally targets children because they know kids do not yet have the defenses or capacity to create healthy boundaries around addictive content.”
Lawsuits on All Sides
This lawsuit comes as the company is also fighting for its very future in the US as the date for its ban in the country creeps ever closer.
Despite furiously defending itself against the accusation of sending users’ information to China, the company’s future is looking bleak unless it can find a US buyer.
