Microsoft Cuts 9,000 Jobs Amid AI Focus, Lovable's Funding Surge, DeepSeek's Global Rise, Substack's Video Push, and Carvel's Ice Cream Billboard Revolution

This week on the podcast, we dive into a series of impactful stories reshaping the tech and marketing landscapes. First, we discuss Microsoft's announcement of cutting about 4 percent of its workforce, approximately 9,000 jobs, amidst economic uncertainties, despite the company's continued profitability and a market valuation nearing $3.7 trillion. This move highlights the evolving job market in the tech sector and Microsoft's significant investments in artificial intelligence and cloud computing. Next, we turn our attention to Lovable, a Swedish AI startup on the brink of securing over $150 million in funding, pushing its valuation close to $2 billion. This investment underscores the rapid growth and potential of AI technologies, as Lovable advances from early seed funding to substantial growth financing, with its web app-building product and a new beta AI agent. Shifting gears, we explore the global AI competition, focusing on DeepSeek, a Chinese AI company. Despite initial controversies and national security concerns, DeepSeek's technologies have gained remarkable adoption About: Stan Berteloot is a French journalist, marketing strategist, and AI expert based in Princeton, New Jersey. A University of Maryland journalism graduate, he navigates the intersection of storytelling, technology, and culture. As Head of Strategy and CTO at Nytro Marketing, he pioneered AI-driven content creation, launching the AI in Marketing podcast. He also hosts Back in America, a podcast exploring American identity through in-depth conversations on race, misinformation, and AI ethics. Sources: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/02/technology/microsoft-layoffs-ai.html https://techcrunch.com/2025/07/02/lovable-on-track-to-raise-150m-at-2b-valuation/ https://www.pymnts.com/artificial-intelligence-2/2025/remember-deepseek-many-adopt-its-ai-models-despite-security-concerns/ https://techcrunch.com/2025/07/02/substack-brings-new-updates-to-livestreaming-as-it-increases-video-push/ https://www.marketingbrew.com/stories/2025/06/25/how-carvel-created-the-first-ice-cream-dispensing-billboard