Facebook parent company Meta has reportedly laid off about 600 employees in its artificial intelligence (AI) division as part of efforts to streamline operations following an aggressive hiring spree.
According to reports from The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times, the layoffs are aimed at teams working on AI infrastructure and products, rather than the TBD Lab, an elite research unit established by Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg.
The TBD Lab had expanded rapidly by recruiting top researchers from competitors like OpenAI and Apple with attractive salary offers.
Sources familiar with the matter said the cuts are aimed at improving efficiency without slowing down the company’s most ambitious AI projects. Some affected staff may also be reassigned to other functions within the company.
The New York Times described the move as an attempt to address “organizational bloat” resulting from Meta’s previous hiring surge to strengthen its AI program.
In an internal memo cited by The Wall Street Journal, Meta’s chief artificial intelligence officer, Alexander Wang, noted that the restructuring would mean that “fewer conversations will be needed to make a decision.”
Meta has not yet officially commented on the reported layoffs.
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