TomTom axes 300 roles to curb losses, bets on AI
THE HAGUE: Dutch car navigation firm TomTom said on Monday that it was slashing 300 jobs, roughly 10 per cent of its workforce, as it seeks to stem financial losses and "embraces artificial intelligence."
The Amsterdam-based company was an early pioneer of digital navigation in cars, but has been struggling as people no longer use a separate device to move around.
TomTom announced in a statement that it was "realigning its organisation... as it embraces artificial intelligence", resulting in "organisational changes."
These changes would affect "certain roles in the units working on our application layer, and in our sales and support functions, resulting in a reduction of 300 roles," the firm said.
The company employs around 3,600 people worldwide.
TomTom forecasts a drop in sales from 574 million euros (US$674 million) in 2024 to 505-565 million this year.
Chief executive Harold Goddijn told investors in April that trade tensions resulting from US President Donald Trump's tariffs made the short-term outlook for the firm "less predictable."
However, he said that he remained "confident in our long-term trajectory."--AFP
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
43 minutes ago
- The Star
Cambodia sees 50% rise in Chinese tourist arrivals in Jan-May period
People sit in tourist boats sailing along the Mekong river in front of the Royal Palace on November 19, 2021. Tourism is one of the four pillars supporting Cambodia's economy. - AFP PHNOM PENH: Cambodia has recorded a 50 per cent increase in the number of Chinese tourists in the first five months of 2025, said the Ministry of Tourism's latest report released on Tuesday (July 1). A total of 488,973 Chinese visitors traveled to the South-East Asian country during the January-May period of this year, up 50 per cent from 326,003 over the same period last year. The number of Chinese tourists accounted for 16.6 per cent of the total 2.95 million international tourist arrivals to Cambodia, the report said, adding that China was the third-largest source of foreign holidaymakers to the kingdom after Thailand and Vietnam. "I firmly believe that the Cambodia-China Tourism Year 2025 will surely become an important opportunity to attract more Chinese tourists to Cambodia and deepen tourism and cultural exchanges between the two countries," Cambodian Tourism Minister Huot Hak said in a recent speech. Thourn Sinan, chairman of the Pacific Asia Travel Association Cambodia chapter, said Chinese tourists are crucial for Cambodia's tourism industry. "The current cooperation between Cambodia and China in tourism is promising, with growing numbers of Chinese visitors contributing significantly to our economy," he told Xinhua. Tourism is one of the four pillars supporting Cambodia's economy, in addition to garments, footwear and travel goods export, agriculture, and construction and real estate. - Xinhua
The Star
43 minutes ago
- The Star
Japan says it won't sacrifice farm sector after Trump complains about rice
This photo taken on June 4, 2025 shows a farmer preparing a transplanter vehicle before planting rice seedlings at a farm in the town of Sanjo, Niigata prefecture in northern Japan. Japan has been grappling with a doubling in rice prices due partly to a weather-driven poor-quality harvest in 2023 that caused a shortage last year. - AFP TOKYO: Japan will not sacrifice the agricultural sector as part of its tariff negotiations with the United States, its top government spokesperson said on Tuesday (July 1), after President Donald Trump complained that its ally was not importing American rice. Trump wrote in a social media post that Japan's reluctance to import American-grown rice was a sign that countries have become "spoiled with respect to the United States of America." "I have great respect for Japan, they won't take our RICE, and yet they have a massive rice shortage," he wrote on Truth Social. Japan has been grappling with a doubling in rice prices due partly to a weather-driven poor-quality harvest in 2023 that caused a shortage last year. The government has released almost its entire stock of emergency rice since March in an effort to bring prices down. "We are not thinking about doing anything that would sacrifice the farm sector," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi told a press conference. He, as well as farm minister Shinjiro Koizumi, declined to comment directly on Trump's post. Koizumi told a separate press conference that his ministry would continue to work with various ministries towards maximising Japan's national interests. Under a "minimum access" agreement within the World Trade Organisation, Japan has an 770,000-tonne tariff-free import quota for rice, of which up to 100,000 tonnes is for staple rice. Beyond this, rice imports are subject to a levy of 341 yen (US$2.37) per kilogramme. To continue in its efforts to lower domestic prices, the government had brought forward a tender for the first 30,000 tonnes of tariff-free staple rice imports earmarked for this year earlier than the usual auction in September. Results of that tender, held on June 27, showed applications for 81,853 tonnes, or nearly three times as much as was auctioned. Of the total tendered, 25,541 tonnes was from the US, followed by 1,500 tonnes from Australia and 708 tonnes from Thailand. - Reuters
New Straits Times
an hour ago
- New Straits Times
Malaysia gains edge as trade diversifies
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia has what it takes to thrive in a volatile global landscape by capitalising on shifting trade flows and supply chain realignments, said DHL Express Malaysia & Brunei. Speaking at the Invest Asean-Malaysia Conference 2025, managing director Julian Neo said multinational corporations (MNCs) are quick to adapt to geopolitical disruptions, and Malaysia is increasingly benefiting from these shifts. "MNCs are agile. When the United States announced new tariffs, one company moved its production from Mexico to Penang within a week," he said. "That speaks volumes about Malaysia's appeal as a reliable and responsive alternative." Neo said the "China Plus X" strategy, where companies diversify production across Asean, is gaining traction, with Malaysia emerging as a major beneficiary. "This shift is fuelling both domestic and foreign direct investments, which are reshaping our economic landscape," he added. Neo noted that 60 per cent of DHL's revenue in Malaysia comes from MNCs, with the remaining 40 per cent driven by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), reflecting a balanced and resilient economy. He emphasised the urgent need for supply chain diversification, citing trends such as near-shoring, re-shoring and friend-shoring. "To stay competitive, we must build resilient supply chains. Malaysia has a critical role to play, and DHL is supporting that with continued investments in artificial intelligence and automation," he said. Neo said technologies adopted during the Covid-19 crisis have helped streamline operations and positioned Malaysia as a key logistics hub in global trade networks. He also highlighted Malaysia's growing ties with emerging markets such as Mexico, Romania and the United Arab Emirates, calling them "important partners for the next wave of trade expansion." "To fully realise the benefits, we must pursue new free trade agreements and deepen engagement with these markets," he said. While MNCs are actively repositioning themselves, Neo voiced concern over local SMEs, many of whom remain hesitant. "Some SMEs are still taking a 'wait and see' approach. But now is the time to act. Use available data to identify trends, work with government agencies, and diversify to reduce over-reliance," he said. Despite the global uncertainties, Neo struck an optimistic tone. Citing DHL's Trade Atlas, he projected global trade to grow by 3.1 per cent between 2024 and 2029. "Even the US-China tensions, which only account for 2.6 per cent of global trade, are not enough to derail momentum," he said. "Global trade is too big to fail and Malaysia has all the right ingredients to succeed within this resilient ecosystem."
