Dell Technologies will eliminate about 6,650 jobs, becoming the latest technology company to cut jobs amid the tough macroeconomic environment. 

The firm is experiencing market conditions that "continue to erode with an uncertain future," Co-Chief Operating Officer Jeff Clarke wrote in a memo to employees.

• Following the job cuts, the company's employee count is likely to fall to its lowest level since 2017.

In today’s newsletter:

• Swiggy beefs up board ahead of IPO
• WhatsApp Business to get more expensive
• The tax googly that blindsided Indian startups

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As Swiggy gears up for a potential IPO, the hyperlocal delivery firm is strengthening its board with independent members, following a similar move by archrival Zomato in 2021.

In a first, the Bengaluru-based unicorn has appointed three independent directors to its board.

• Delhivery founder and CEO Sahil Barua is one of the new board members at Swiggy

• The other two new board members are industrialist Mallika Srinivasan and veteran chartered accountant Shailesh Haribhakti

Swiggy said last month that it was laying off 380 employees in order to rationalise its business and reach profitability sooner than previously planned.

• It also shut down its online meat marketplace and said that it would re-evaluate the performance of some of its verticals
  
  
• Swiggy reported a net loss of Rs 3,628.9 crore for FY22 last month, while revenue increased 125% to Rs 5,704.9 crore

WhatsApp Business is thriving, and parent firm Meta wants to capitalise on this growth.

WhatsApp, which makes money by enabling businesses and brands to engage with their customers, is changing how it charges companies for its business messaging service.

WhatsApp is introducing three new categories in business-initiated conversations: Utility, Authentication and Marketing. 

Starting June 1, 2023, it will charge businesses based on the category of the conversation with lower rates for utility messages and higher rates for marketing messages, instead of levying a flat fee. 

• WhatsApp is also tweaking its free tier to exclude business-initiated conversations

With these changes, WhatsApp is looking to differentiate between various types of messages that brands send to customers. The costs of servicing an ongoing transaction are lower, whereas the costs of driving new sales are higher.

• Higher prices for marketing messages could also mean fewer promotional messages, industry watchers tell us. Given how users (including us!) have been bombarded with promotional messages in recent months, we really hope this happens.

Go deeper

P.S. We recently did a deep dive into WhatsApp Business' origins, how Meta is developing the product, how brands are using it, and future challenges. The app is on track to generate $1 billion in revenue in India by the end of this year. Do read the story.

As if the funding winter wasn't enough, the government has thrown another curveball at startups.

A day after the Economic Survey laid out a roadmap to encourage foreign-domiciled startups to return home, the Budget gave a new lease of life to the draconian angel tax.

Since 2012, the startup ecosystem has been grappling with the angel tax, a levy on the valuation premium received by a startup from angel investments.

• This tax regime did not include investments by India-registered VC firms and foreign investors

However, beginning April 1, the budget mandates that foreign funding will no longer be exempt from the tax.

• This could limit funding for Indian startups, given that over 90% of such investments come from abroad

Over the years, both startups and investors have expressed concern about facing trouble from taxmen due to this provision, even in cases of genuine investments.

• Startups have reported receiving tax notices for angel investments made 3-4 years prior

• Industry executives say the government’s move will hurt the ability to make salary advances, engage in stock M&A, create a subsidiary, or contribute to an ESOP trust

Read our explainer

On this day, February 6, 1971, legendary astronaut and avid golfer, Alan Shepard, made history by transforming the Moon's surface into his own personal driving range during the Apollo 14 mission. 

Before leaving the lunar surface, he attached the head of a 6-iron golf club to the foldable shaft of a lunar soil sampler and took two shots, with the second ball travelling "miles and miles," he said during the live telecast. (Picture Credit: NASA)

Watch Shepard take the first-ever golf swing on the Moon.

• FTX's new management is looking to recover political donations made by Sam Bankman-Fried and other executives by the end of the month. 
  
  
• Crypto exchange Binance has launched a free tool for users to determine their tax obligations on crypto transactions. The tool, available in Canada and France initially, can handle reporting for up to 100,000 transactions.

Beyoncé has done it again. At the 65th Grammy Awards, Queen Bey reigned supreme, solidifying her legacy as the most honoured artist in the ceremony's illustrious past.

She won the Grammy for Best Dance/Electronic Music Album for her smash Renaissance, eclipsing the late classical conductor Georg Solti, who had 31 awards.

Beyoncé wasn't the only one making history at the Grammys.

Indian music composer Ricky Kej won his third Grammy at the music award ceremony. The US-born musician shared the best immersive audio album award for Divine Tides with Stewart Copeland, the drummer of the iconic British rock band The Police. Kej dedicated his Grammys victory to India. 

Check out the Grammys 2023 roundup.

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