Meta planning layoffs that could affect 20% of workforce

• Meta employed nearly 79,000 people as of December 31st, according to its latest filing.
• The company plans to spend around $600bn building data centres by 2028 to support its AI ambitions.
• Meta is offering large compensation packages to recruit top AI researchers for a new superintelligence team.

Meta is considering a new round of layoffs that could affect 20% or more of its workforce as the company increases spending on AI and seeks greater operational efficiency.

As reported by Reuters, senior executives have recently asked leadership teams across the company to begin preparing for potential staff reductions. The scale and timing of the layoffs have not yet been finalised.

If implemented, the cuts would mark Meta’s largest workforce reduction since the company’s “year of efficiency” restructuring in 2022 and 2023. Meta employed nearly 79,000 people as of December 31st, according to its latest regulatory filing.

During the earlier restructuring, the company laid off around 11,000 employees in November 2022, followed by a further 10,000 job cuts four months later.

AI investment push

The potential layoffs come as CEO Mark Zuckerberg pushes Meta to strengthen its position in generative AI after the company discussed investing around $600 billion in infrastructure, including AI data centres by 2028.

The company has been offering large compensation packages to attract leading AI researchers to a new superintelligence team while significantly increasing infrastructure investment.

Elsewhere, Meta is restructuring its Reality Labs strategy by separating the Quest VR platform from Horizon Worlds and shifting the social sandbox app’s focus toward mobile devices. 

The Facebook parent said it is adjusting its investment in the division to support long-term sustainability while continuing to prioritise VR hardware. Horizon Worlds will now be developed primarily for mobile in an effort to reach a much larger audience beyond VR users.