Meta is laying off about 8,000 employees — roughly 10% of its workforce — starting May 20, according to an internal memo from chief human resources officer Janelle Gale. The cuts are part of a broader plan to reduce staff by up to 20% as the company pours money into AI and tries to run more efficiently. Meta also scrapped plans to hire 6,000 new workers this year.
Gale wrote in the memo that the layoffs are “part of an ongoing effort to operate the company more efficiently while offsetting other investments we’re making. This is not an easy decision, and it means saying goodbye to people who have made meaningful contributions at Meta.”
Meta, the company behind Instagram and Facebook, is reportedly planning to lay off 8,000 — the first wave of a larger 2026 reduction.
Previous reports indicated Meta planned to cut up to 20% of its workforce. In March, it laid off several hundred employees. The company has been under pressure from rising AI costs and a pivot away from the metaverse. In January, Meta shut down its metaverse-related division, laying off over 1,000 people and closing VR studios.
Meta confirms over 1,000 layoffs and VR studio closures, pivots from metaverse to mobile and AI wearables.
As part of that AI push, Meta has also been tracking employee clicks and keystrokes to train its AI replacements. The layoffs are expected to continue.