With restructuring efforts gathering pace, Meta has fixed May 20 as the starting point for a potentially record-breaking round of layoffs led by CEO Mark Zuckerberg. This could become the company’s most sweeping job cuts to date. The first phase alone is expected to affect nearly 8,000 employees about 10% of Meta’s global workforce in a single move.
This may only be the beginning. A second round of layoffs is anticipated later in 2026, though details regarding its timing and scale remain unclear. According to sources cited by Reuters, final decisions could hinge on how Meta’s AI capabilities evolve, underscoring the company’s $135 billion investment and the central role AI now plays in shaping its workforce strategy.
Meta’s workforce reset didn’t begin with May 20, it’s been building for months. The company, which had nearly 79,000 employees at the end of last year, has been quietly reshaping its teams. Engineers are being funneled into a new “Applied AI” unit, tasked with building autonomous systems, while others are being redirected to newer business lines. Behind the scenes, Meta is deciding which roles fit its AI-first future and which don’t.
The cuts reflect a broader shift in priorities. With tens of billions committed to AI infrastructure, the approach is straightforward: scale up AI capabilities, then streamline the workforce around them.
Smaller layoffs earlier this year offered a preview over 1,000 roles cut in January, followed by additional trims in March. Now, a much larger reduction looms, suggesting the company is moving from testing the waters to executing a full-scale plan.
Though Meta hasn’t specified who will be affected, previous cuts point to pressure on non-AI roles, particularly in operations and middle management, as the company flattens its structure. If the planned layoffs continue through the year, 2026 could surpass previous records.
