HeyWhatsNew: Layoffs Could Affect 20% of Meta, and China Pushes Towards Advanced Local Chip Manufacturing
Hey, Heyuppers! Let’s take a look at all the latest and greatest news from the world of tech, innovation, and gaming since 16/03/2026.
Meta Layoffs Could Affect 20% of the Company
As Meta shifts further toward AI innovation, the company is reportedly planning sweeping layoffs that could affect 20% of its workforce. The layoffs are being made to offset costly bets on artificial intelligence infrastructure and to prepare for greater efficiency enabled by AI-assisted workers. Sources state that top executives have recently signaled their plans to other senior leaders at Meta and told them to begin planning how to pare back.
However, Meta spokesperson Andy Stone called the news “speculative reporting about theoretical approaches." This emerging news comes after the company outlined major spending plans for AI infrastructure and transactions, with plans to invest $600bn to build data centers by 2028.
Uber Founder Launches Industrial Robotics Startup
Travis Kalanick, the co-founder and former chief executive of Uber, announced the launch of a startup focused on specialized robotics and “physical automation to transform industry and move the world.” The former Uber CEO restructured City Storage Systems, the parent of CloudKitchens, into a new company called Atoms.
Kalanick noted that this was also a move that would expand the company’s reach in the mining and transport industries. He also added that Atoms makes “gainfully employed robots”, which are specialized robots with productive jobs that bring abundance to their owners and society at large.
China’s Second-Largest Chipmaker Prepares for Advanced Production
According to sources close to the case, China's second-largest chipmaker, Hua Hong Group, has now developed advanced chip manufacturing technologies that can be used to produce AI chips. Huali Microelectronics, the group's contract chipmaking business, is now producing a 7-nanometre (nm) chipmaking process at its plant in Shanghai. This would establish the company as only the second Chinese chipmaker with such advanced technologies.
This comes after the US lifted chip export restrictions and allowed Nvidia to sell its second-most-powerful AI chips to China. Beijing, however, encouraged local development and alternatives, pushing the country towards self-sustaining efficiency and less reliance on foreign entities.
Xbox Alley X Upgrade Set to Improve Performance
At the GDC Festival of Gaming, Microsoft announced that it would be adding Automatic Super Resolution, or Auto SR, to the Asus ROG Xbox Ally X. This feature would be added in an update scheduled for April and only works for games with DirectX 11 or 12 support. Xbox states that the technology uses AI to scale up resolution in real-time and improve performance.
While originally part of Copilot+ PC setups with Snapdragon X or X2 processors, this new feature is set to fill in gaps and provide higher framerates with AI processing. The feature can also be seen as Microsoft’s answer to AI upscaling, similar to tools like Nvidia’s DLSS or AMD’s FSR that are designed to help games look better while running at lower resolutions.
Loot Boxes Drive Up Age Restrictions Across Europe
After the Pan-European system for the age classification of video games, PEGI, cracked down on interactive risk categories in Europe, video games that feature loot boxes could be looking at a minimum age restriction of 16 across Europe, including the UK. This reportedly comes after research linked the in-game feature that allows players to purchase random items to gambling.
The organization stated that video games with paid random items would receive the default rating of PEGI 16 and could be pushed to PEGI 18 in certain cases. Games with time-limited or quantity-limited in-game content purchases will be classified as PEGI 12, while games with NFTs or blockchain-related mechanisms will be rated PEGI 18. The rating will take effect in June and looks to “provide parents and players with more useful and transparent advice that better reflects the overall experience that players can expect from the video games they play.”
That wraps up this week’s top stories, Heyuppers. Stay tuned for more updates, surprises, and trends from the world of tech and gaming next week.
