India, July 8 -- Reality bites. So does the reality of artificial intelligence (AI). And, it seems to have bitten off 30% of the workforce at VerSe Innovation. The layoffs have not been to cut costs, but to shift the pivot from grey cells to black boxes.

As AI sweeps through the media and content landscape, there's a visible rush among players to adapt to the evolving reality. The latest round of job cuts at VerSe in May this year was an impact of this rapid transformation.

For the parent of DailyHunt, bringing AI into its core was a desperate bid to monetise the venture, bring more advertisers, and mobilise its short video platform Josh.

A series of acquisitions made over the last few years weighed on the coffers of VerSe, which serve...