In a significant restructuring effort, Meta has announced plans to lay off approximately 8,000 employees—equivalent to about 10% of its global workforce—and eliminate 6,000 unfilled roles. This move is reported by the New York Times and aims to reallocate resources towards extensive artificial intelligence initiatives, as confirmed by the company.
The layoffs were disclosed through an internal communication from Janelle Gale, Meta’s chief people officer, who emphasized that these reductions are a strategic necessity to support the company’s broader ambitions. “We’re doing this as part of our continued effort to run the company more efficiently and to allow us to offset the other investments we’re making,” Gale explained in her memo. She acknowledged the difficulty of this decision, noting it involves parting ways with employees who have significantly contributed to Meta.
These developments echo a broader trend among Silicon Valley’s tech giants, where increased AI investment is accompanied by workforce reductions. Similarly, Microsoft has offered buyouts to 7% of its staff on Thursday, while Block announced in February that it was cutting over 4,000 positions—40% of its workforce—to enhance AI-driven efficiencies.
Meta’s layoffs are part of CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s broader strategy to pivot the company towards AI. With a forecast indicating AI systems could soon replace much of the work done by human engineers and technical staff, Meta is investing heavily in this area. As of 2025, with more than 78,000 employees, the company saw a revenue increase of 24 percent in its last quarter, largely attributed to AI-enhanced advertising tools.
Despite these financial gains, Meta anticipates capital expenditures reaching up to $135 billion for the current year—almost double that of the previous year—with significant portions allocated toward AI infrastructure development.
U.S. employees affected by the layoffs will be informed on May 20 and receive severance packages consisting of 16 weeks’ base pay, along with two additional weeks per year of service. Following the announcement, Meta’s stock price fell more than 2%, closing at approximately $659 per share.