Zenius layoffs show that winter isn’t coming - it’s already here

Check out our top articles for the week [Read from your browser]( Top Stories of The Week Hello {NAME} A friend of mine wanted to buy an iPad Air last week, but they were all sold out. Yes, you read that correctly. None of Singapore's three Apple Stores had a single iPad Air. Well, you could order one online, but that would mean waiting for about a month. According to a store employee, there were no available stocks due to bogged-down supply chains. And the reason for the delay? Lockdowns in China. A couple of years ago, it was perhaps unimaginable to see this happening to Apple, a company synonymous with efficiency, attention to detail, and going the extra mile for customers. Sure, there have been delays before with products that were just launched, but not with those that have been out for months. Then again, these are not normal times. With Covid-19 still upon us, and the ongoing war in Ukraine, I suppose there's a limit to how many punches the global economy can take. It's inevitable that startups - of any vertical, in any region - will start feeling the aftershocks. When the Indonesian edtech startup Zenius became one of the first to announce layoffs, it cited "macroeconomic" reasons. The chatter on the ground is that it's only a matter of time before others follow. It's a bad situation all around, but I appreciate the fact that Zenius is taking steps now rather than later. Most importantly, laid-off employees will be eligible for severance pay as set out by Indonesian law. (If you've ever worked or lived in Indonesia, you know how many companies try to cheat their way around this.) -- [Putra Muskita]( journalist at Tech in Asia --------------------------------------------------------------- TOP STORIES THIS WEEK 1️. [Indonesia’s Zenius lays off 200+ employees]( Two affected employees say that the edtech startup's content team is particularly impacted. 2. [The pitfalls of Vietnam’s GameFi sensation]( Vietnam is a hotbed for GameFi, but there's a flip side to it. 3. [The key players in Southeast Asia’s quick commerce space]( Quick deliveries are increasingly becoming the norm rather than the exception. But there are challenges. 4. [Tencent’s gameplay in a sea of troubles]( As Tencent posts its lowest Q1 revenue growth in over 15 years, we look at the problems it faces and its strategy going forward. 5. [Org Chart: How Grab Financial Group fits into the picture]( We look at the who's who at Grab's financial arm. 6. [This deck got blockchain-powered fintech firm Doxa $2.2m]( The firm's Doxa Connex platform lets construction players and real estate developers process procurement, payment, and financing digitally. 7. [Baidu’s financial health in 5 charts]( Here are five charts, updated every quarter, that present a snapshot of how Baidu's financials are doing. 8. [New Marcos admin has work cut out to support Filipino startups]( Investors want clear plans for the economy as the late dictator's son prepares to take the Philippines' highest post. 9. [Kopi Kenangan’s return to profits after a year in the red]( Hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, the Indonesian coffee tech startup got submerged in losses in 2020 only to surface back to profitability a year later. 10. [How Terra obscured its break-up with Chai]( Chai, a popular Korean payment app linked to Terra, is known for its use of the latter’s Korean stablecoin. --------------------------------------------------------------- EVENTS HAPPENING You can check out a curated list of trending tech events [over here](. - *Free Event* Tech in Asia's Product Development Conference on June 8-9 The countdown begins - we're two weeks away from our flagship Product Development Conference! 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