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  • Mark Zuckerberg weighs in on why tech companies are laying off workers

    Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said the layoffs that are hitting the tech industry aren’t due to the growth of artificial intelligence.

    It started as the result of companies trying to navigate the e-commerce boom during the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, they’re realizing they can be more efficient as a leaner organization, Zuckerberg said during a conversation on the Morning Brew Daily podcast.

    Specifically for Meta, Zuckerberg said, “The AI stuff was not a major driver of that.”

    LAYOFFS SURGED 136% IN JANUARY TO SECOND-HIGHEST LEVEL ON RECORD

    When e-commerce started to surge during the pandemic, Zuckerberg said it was hard to predict if this was going to continue.

    What happened, he said, was that companies “overbuilt.”
    Mark Zuckerberg

    Meta was one of them. In November 2022, Zuckerberg announced that the company was laying off more than 11,000 workers to become leaner after making significant investments during the surge of e-commerce. The company cut another 10,000 roles last spring.

    But Meta was only one of several major tech firms that had layoffs, including Alphabet, Amazon and Microsoft, throughout the past year, with many companies saying they over-hired.

    “I think across the economy, a lot of companies just kind of overbuilt, and then when things went back to pretty close to exactly what they were the way before… I think a lot of companies realized, ‘Hey, we’re kind of not in a good financial place because we overbuilt,’” Zuckerberg told hosts Neal Freyman and Toby Howell.
    Meta Platforms Executive Chairman Mark Zuckerberg gestures to the Facebook Messenger logo

    As a result, “you had this wave of layoffs that were basically responding to that,” he continued.

    At the same time, the chief executive said there was a “generation of companies that knew nothing except growth.” But after forcibly having to make cuts, a lot of companies realized they had become more effective as a leaner organization, he said.

    Today, a lot of companies are still in this mode of thinking of “how lean and efficient we should be… maybe we should be in a somewhat different shape than we are now to do the best work that we can.”

    In January, companies planned 82,307 job cuts, a 136% increase from the previous month, according to a report published by Challenger, Gray & Christmas. It was also the second-highest layoff total for the month of January since 2009.

    It’s impacting workers from a variety of sectors including tech, media and Wall Street.

  • ‘My life had been threatened for dating Dr. Grace Boadu’ – Boyfriend as he shares account on doctor’s death

    Partner of the late Dr. Grace Boadu, Pastor Kingsley Gyamfi, has shared some details of his two-year relationship with the late Grace Gift Herbal Hospital founder.

    He made these statements while sharing a blow-by-blow account of his last moments with the deceased and what he witnessed at her residence on the day of her demise.

    In an interview with Kessben FM, Pastor Gyamfi said he had been in touch with Dr. Grace Boadu all through her most recent trip to South Africa and even when she arrived home in Accra.

    However, he had noticed that their phone communication seized when he was on his way to Accra but couldn’t go to her residence to check on her due to certain restrictions.

    Explaining further, Pastor Gyamfi said his relationship with the late herbal doctor had been saddled with death threats and out of fear, he was unable to barge into her home to find out why she had not been picking his calls for more than eight hours.

    “The last time I heard from her, she was leaving South Africa for Ghana…at a point, she even told me she had to transit at Ethiopia,” he said. “We were very much in touch. She wanted me to meet her at the airport in Accra and I was in Kumasi. I wasn’t feeling well so I couldn’t go early to meet her. So later I set off from Kumasi and we were even chatting on my way to Accra but it got to a point where she was unreachable.”

    He continued: “When I got to Accra, she was still unreachable, and I went straight to my house and slept. I woke up and still tried reaching her but she still wasn’t picking up. So, I called her workers and asked them to confirm if she was home. They admitted that she had locked herself indoors since she returned from the South Africa trip.

    “So, I went with the police and we went to break down her door and we found her lying on the floor in her washroom. I felt the need to go to her house when I got to Accra but certain things have been happening. There have been threats on my life concerning my relationship with her so I have been careful. That’s why I didn’t want to involve myself or overstep my boundaries when she did not pick up my calls,” he established.

    When asked if there was a rival in the picture who had been threatening him, he answered, “Grace wasn’t that type of woman. She was a decent, transparent and a good woman. It is those around her.”

    The pastor was then asked if all through their relationship he had encountered instances where the doctor had experienced a fall of any sort and he responded, “Later, we’ll talk about all that. She was my girlfriend so definitely I will know a lot of things about her. But all these things will be unravelled later. I can’t speak on it. All I can say for now is that she wasn’t in the bathtub as people purported, she was on the washroom floor.”

    Pastor Kingsley Gyamfi was also asked about his opinion on the contrasting claims by the deceased’s family and the hospital’s management regarding her purpose of visit to South Africa, but he insisted on staying mute on that particular subject.

    “I don’t want to talk about this either. Later everyone will get to know.”

    Meanwhile, in a couple of videos making rounds online, the pastor and his entourage had been spotted being restricted from entering the deceased’s residence in Accra, and this has since stirred massive reactions from netizens.

    Dr. Grace Boadu is said to have died on January 29, 2024. She is rumoured to have died in the bathroom.

    An autopsy is yet to be conducted to officially identify the cause of Dr. Grace Boadu’s sudden death.

    Many showbiz personalities have mourned the deceased considering the bond that existed between them as she was referred to as a ‘celebrity doctor’. The likes of music group Keche, actor Kwaku Manu, singer Mzbel have all reacted to the development.

  • “Pastor Speaks In Tongues, Sheds Tears, And Rants As Church Member Breaks His Heart” [Video]

    A lady caused a stir on social media as she shared a WhatsApp record of her church pastor attacking her with curses and insults after she allegedly broke his heart.

    In the said post captioned: ‘When you break a man of God’s heart,’ the face of the lady could be seen, after which she revealed the WhatsApp voice note sent to her by her church pastor.
    “Chinenye, why, what did I do?” – Pastor speaks in tongues, sheds tears, and rants as church member breaks his heart

    While full details of the matter regarding the cause of the break-up have not been made public, the said pastor could be heard swearing while maintaining that as his heart has been broken, the heart of the lady would also be broken by God.

    He claimed he is an anointed person, hence, shouldn’t have been hurt because the Bible says ‘touch not the anointed.‘ But what has been done to him by the said lady who broke his heart is bad.

    He made several other statements in the video which has been attached below.

    The said video has also attracted the attention of many social media users who have taken to the comment page of the post to air their thoughts.

    Watch The Video Below:

     

  • E-zevis Donates Bags And Stationary Items To Etwereso AME Zion JHS

    Akim-Etwereso AME Zion Junior High School has benefited from E-zevis continues support of school children in Ghana and other African countries.

    The mobile market app giants E-zevis donated bags to needy pupils in the school.

    Besides, the school also received stationary items such as pens and creative arts materials to support learning.

    The donation was made on Wednesday, January 24, 2024.

    Pupils and teachers received the items and expressed gratitude for the support received from E-zevis.

    Co-founder of E-zevis, US-based Ghanaian businessman Jerome Nii Kpakpo Acquaue divulged in a post on Facebook and said

    ” Shenaza E-zevis is here to help not just the #Trading Center…. but help humanity ”

    Know more About E-zevis

    E-zevis is a marketplace application used on mobile phones.

    The platform allows users to sell buy and swap all items with zero fee.

    Download the application👉 Here

     

  • Elon Musk leads world’s richest to US$1.5 trillion wealth gain in 2023

    It was a comeback year for the world’s wealthiest. The combined net worth of the 500 richest people surged by US$1.5 trillion in 2023, fully rebounding from the $1.4 trillion lost the year prior, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

    Once again, their fortunes were closely correlated to the performance of tech stocks, which rose to fresh records this year despite recession fears, lingering inflation, lofty interest rates and geopolitical turmoil. Tech billionaires saw their wealth grow by 48 per cent or $658 billion, propelled by intense hype around artificial intelligence.

    No one did better than Elon Musk, who recaptured the title of world’s richest person from French luxury tycoon, Bernard Arnault.

    The Tesla Inc. chief executive officer netted an additional $95.4 billion through Thursday’s close, bolstered by the success of Tesla and SpaceX, after losing $138 billion in 2022.

    His net worth is now more than $50 billion above Arnault’s after a global slowdown in demand for luxury goods dented shares of LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE.

    Amazon.com Inc. founder, Jeff Bezos, added more than $70 billion to his wallet this year and is now neck-and-neck with Arnault for second place, while Meta Platforms Inc. CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s fortune jumped by more than $80 billion.

    The rising tide left some boats behind. Indian billionaire Gautam Adani lost $21 billion on Jan. 27 alone – and $37.3 billion across the whole year – after short-seller Hindenburg Research tanked the value of the Adani Group. Nevertheless, he still possesses an 11-figure fortune.

    What does the world hold in store for the wealthiest people in 2024? While it’s impossible to know for sure — few would have foreseen such a large rebound this year.

    Here are some of the names below;

    Miriam Adelson

    Adelson, 78, became the majority shareholder of casino operator Las Vegas Sands Corp. after her husband Sheldon’s death in 2021. After lying low for a time, Adelson this year reached a deal to buy a $3.5 billion majority stake in the Dallas Mavericks and courted Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley. Her net worth climbed to $34.3 billion.

    Francoise Bettencourt Meyers

    As the heir to the L’Oréal fortune, Bettencourt Meyers, 70, is the richest woman on the planet and the first to possess a 12-figure net worth. Bettencourt Meyers’ success comes as a result of France’s thriving beauty and fashion industries, which have also thrust LVMH’s Arnault, Chanel’s Wertheimer brothers and the Hermès family into the realm of the ultrawealthy. Her fortune surged 40 per cent this year as L’Oréal’s shares climbed to a record high.

    Steve Cohen

    The founder of Point72 Asset Management is all in on New York dynasties — old and new. Cohen, 67, owns the News York Mets and is attempting to revitalize the baseball franchise after years of lackluster performance. He’s also partnering with Hard Rock International in an attempt to secure one of the state’s limited new casino licenses, giving beleaguered Mets fans the chance to gamble their sorrows away. His wealth rose to $13.9 billion in 2023.

    Mark Cuban

    Cuban, 65, has a knack for getting out at the right time, selling his radio-streaming website Broadcast.com shortly before the dot-com bubble burst. He purchased the Dallas Mavericks in 2000 for $285 million, winning three division titles, two conference championships and an NBA championship before flipping them to Adelson for $3.5 billion. (He’ll keep a minority stake.) Whether this goes down as another well-timed Cuban sale remains to be seen. His fortune climbed to $6.8 billion this year.

    Carl Icahn

    It was a rough year for the activist investor after short-seller Hindenburg Research initiated a meltdown that wiped $18.1 billion from his fortune, including more than $10 billion in just one day. Still, 87-year-old Icahn has a lot of fight left in him. He intends to launch a new proxy battle to take control of Illumina Inc.’s board, according to people familiar with the matter, after the DNA-sequencing company terminated a costly acquisition that Icahn had criticized.

    Rupert Murdoch

    The 92-year-old News Corp. founder has officially retired, ceding control to his son, Lachlan. It’s set to be a rocky year for the heir as candidates including Joe Biden and Donald Trump vie for the presidency again.

    Fox Corp. already settled with Dominion Voting Systems for $787.5 million after the company accused the network of airing false claims that it rigged the vote against Trump. Fox still faces another lawsuit by Smartmatic Corp. in a similar case. The controversy hasn’t dented Rupert Murdoch’s net worth, which rose to $8.9 billion in 2023.

    Masayoshi Son

    The Japanese investor made a big bet on WeWork, which officially crumpled in 2023, and people are questioning his judgment after he continued to pour money into Adam Neumann’s remote-work business even after it was clearly struggling. The SoftBank Group Corp. founder, 66, is likely to struggle further as deals dry up. But he’s pulled himself out of deeper holes before, climbing back after losing tens of billions of dollars in the dot-com crash. Son’s wealth fell to $11.4 billion this year.

    Donald Trump

    The former president and current candidate may have lost the 2020 election, but his wallet has only gained. His wealth has grown by ​​$500 million since 2021, giving him a total net worth of $3.1 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Still, 2024 will be a battle for Trump, 77, as he defends himself in lawsuits related to his defamation of author E. Jean Carroll, alleged fraud as well as his attempts to overturn the 2020 election – all while running for president.

    Changpeng “CZ” Zhao

    In many ways it was a rough year for the 46-year-old founder of Binance, the world’s biggest crypto exchange. In November, CZ and Binance pleaded guilty to money laundering and U.S. sanctions violations.

    He agreed to step down as CEO and personally pay a $50 million fine in addition to the $4.3 billion Binance will have to fork over. Still, the rebound in crypto boosted CZ’s wealth by nearly $25 billion this year, even as he may be headed to jail in 2024.

  • Ghana is not completely out of the woods – Akufo-Addo admits in New Year message

    President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has spoken about the economy in his first message of the year 2024.

    In a message posted in the early hours of the New Year, Akufo-Addo related to the economic struggles that the country has faced in the last two years.

    According to him, Ghana’s recovery was on course and he believed that the country will emerge victorious.

    “I wish all Ghanaians a Happy and Prosperous 2024. Even though we are not completely out of the woods, I am confident that, with hard work and determination, Ghana will make it, and collectively, we will secure our futures,” the message posted on his social media handles read.

    The president and his appointees have serially insisted that despite the challenges, the economy is rebounding citing dropping inflation, stable exchange rate and stabilized cedi depreciation among other indicators.

    The Ghanaian economy has been a topical issue in recent years following a downturn occasioned by galloping inflation, a depreciating currency, and a general decline in the quality of life coupled with high cost of living.

    The government has serially blamed the aftermath of COVID-19 and the Russia-Ukraine war before submitting to a US$3 billion IMF loan last year, of which US$600 million as tranche one has been credited to the government account.