AI the elephant in room as Canva announces large staff layoffs

The Australian founded graphic design platform says it plans to retrench almost a quarter of its global workforce. Canva CEO Melanie Perkins refrained however from attributing the job losses to AI, instead citing “new technology” as the cause: New technology is transforming what people can create, how they create it, and what they expect from the products they use. Terrible news for about twelve-hundred Canva employees, as the company looks to consolidate operations to its Sydney base, and compel those who remain to spend more time in the office. The terms for departing staff seem as reasonable as can be expected under the circumstances, and include an incentive to start their own companies: Departing staff will receive at least six months’ salary, 12 months of healthcare where Canva provides it, and they can keep their work MacBooks. They can also apply for $US10,000 grants to start their own ventures. Starting a new venture isn’t a half bad idea in this environment, as I fear what…

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