Reports: Meta might soon lay off 20% of its workforce

Meta is considering a new round of layoffs that could affect 20% or more of its workforce, according to a recent Reuters report. The potential cuts are part of a broader effort by the company to manage rising costs of artificial intelligence infrastructure while preparing for productivity gains from AI-assisted employees.

According to Reuters, the company has not yet set a timeline for the layoffs, and the final scale of the reductions has not been determined. The report mentioned that Meta’s senior leadership has recently discussed the possibility of major workforce reductions with other top executives and asked them to begin evaluating how their teams could be streamlined.

If the company ultimately moves forward with layoffs affecting around 20% of staff, it would mark the largest workforce reduction since the restructuring period in late 2022 and early 2023, which Meta referred to as its “year of efficiency.” As of December 31, Meta employed nearly 79,000 people, according to its most recent regulatory filing.

In November 2022, Meta reduced its workforce by about 11,000 employees, roughly 13 % of its staff at the time. About four months later, the company announced another round of layoffs affecting 10,000 workers.

Over the past year, CEO Mark Zuckerberg has intensified efforts to position Meta as a major competitor in generative AI. The company has reportedly offered compensation packages totaling hundreds of millions of dollars over four years to attract leading AI researchers to a newly formed superintelligence team.

Meta has also outlined plans to invest $600 billion in building data centers by 2028. Earlier this week, the company acquired Moltbook, a social platform designed for AI agents. Meta is also reportedly spending at least $2 billion to acquire the Chinese AI startup, Manus.

Zuckerberg has suggested that these investments could significantly improve productivity across the company. In January, he said he was beginning to see “projects that used to require big teams now be accomplished by a single very talented person.”

Meta’s strategy reflects a broader trend among large US companies, particularly in the technology sector, where executives cite advances in AI as a driver of workforce restructuring.

In January, Amazon confirmed plans to eliminate around 16,000 positions, representing close to 10 % of its workforce. Last month, fintech company Block reduced its headcount by nearly half, with CEO Jack Dorsey directly referencing AI tools and their growing ability to enable companies to operate with smaller teams.