Unicorn of news aggregation VerSe Innovation, the parent company of Dailyhunt and short video platform Josh, has laid off 5 per cent of its 3,000-person workforce following its bi-annual performance management cycle in an effort to streamline costs and teams.

The layoffs come just a few months after the company raised $805 million at a $5 billion valuation. CPP Investments led the round, writing a $425 million check on its own. In April, new investors Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board, Luxor Capital, and Sumeru Ventures joined existing investors Sofina Group and Baillie Gifford.

In addition, its Chinese investor ByteDance sold its entire stake in the round to two Canadian investors: CPP Investments (formerly CPPIB) and the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board (OTPP).

In addition to the layoffs, the company has announced salary reductions across all verticals in order to reduce costs.

VerSe Innovation, which was founded in 2007, launched Josh in 2020, after the Indian government banned the popular ByteDance-powered short video platform TikTok, citing national security and user safety concerns.

The company reported a net loss of Rs 2,556 crore in fiscal year 2022, up from Rs 822 crore the previous year. Its total revenue, on the other hand, increased by Rs 1,095 crore from Rs 727 crore in the fiscal year ended 31 March 2021.

Aside from Dailyhunt and Josh, the company also runs the hyperlocal video app PublicVibe. However, Dailyhunt remains the company’s primary source of revenue. In FY22, the company distributed Josh’s earnings to short-video platform influencers.

VerSe Innovation’s third acquisition was the homegrown social networking app GolBol in 2021. Previously, the company acquired Bengaluru-based Cognirel Technologies to improve its artificial intelligence capabilities, as well as the video-sharing app Vebbler to expand creator offerings on Josh.

Categories: Other News