The short video platform TikTok increasingly relies on artificial intelligence (AI) for content moderation and simultaneously plans worldwide job cuts. The online service, which is part of the Chinese ByteDance group, announced on Friday that it will invest two billion dollars (around 1.83 billion euros) in the area of "trust and safety" and further enhance the effectiveness of these measures.

Thanks to new technologies, TikTok now automatically removes 80% of all "offensive content". The platform uses a combination of human moderators and machine detection to review published content. In recent months, there had been speculation that TikTok would significantly reduce its operational and marketing teams worldwide. According to the website, parent company ByteDance employs more than 100,000 people in over 200 cities worldwide.

The announced job cuts include around 150 positions, with no specific countries mentioned. However, it is speculated that Malaysia will be particularly affected as large technology companies there are increasingly under regulatory pressure to combat malicious and inflammatory content on online platforms. These measures are intended to help reduce operating costs and increase the efficiency of content moderation.

A spokesperson for ByteDance stated: "Our business operations are in a challenging environment, and the use of AI allows us to work more efficiently while also increasing our safety standards." The decision to cut hundreds of jobs comes alongside the expansion into alternative technologies to meet the growing regulatory demands and reduce operating costs.

Despite the investments, uncertainty remains high as the regulatory framework and public perception could strongly influence further developments at TikTok. The restructuring is part of a larger strategy aimed at increasing efficiency and making the platform more sustainable by relying more on technological innovations.