Meta Platforms has begun a fresh wave of global layoffs as the social media giant accelerates its transition toward an AI-focused operating structure, according to reports reviewed by Bloomberg.
The company reportedly started notifying affected employees on Wednesday morning, with staff across Asia among the first to receive termination notices.
Employees in the United States were also expected to be informed later in the day as the restructuring process expanded across multiple regions.
The latest round of cuts is expected to affect approximately 8,000 employees worldwide, with engineering and product divisions believed to be among the hardest hit.
Reports indicate that additional workforce reductions could follow later in 2026 as the company continues to streamline operations around artificial intelligence initiatives.
At the same time, Meta has reassigned nearly 7,000 employees into newly created AI-focused teams dedicated to building advanced AI products, agents, and automation systems.
The company is significantly increasing investments in artificial intelligence infrastructure and technologies, with spending expected to surpass $100 billion this year.
Meta’s Head of People, Janelle Gale, said the company believes smaller and flatter organizational structures will allow teams to move faster and operate more efficiently.
The restructuring reflects CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s broader strategy to position Meta at the center of the global AI race, where it competes directly with rivals including Alphabet’s Google and OpenAI.
Over recent years, Meta has repeatedly reduced staff numbers while increasing automation and AI integration across its operations.
Zuckerberg has publicly encouraged the use of AI coding assistants internally and has pushed for more AI-driven workflows throughout the company.
Experts warn, however, that aggressive automation-driven restructuring could create long-term risks for employee morale and talent retention.
Jan-Emmanuel De Neve, a professor of economics and behavioral science at the University of Oxford, said companies that aggressively replace human roles with automation may achieve short-term savings but risk damaging long-term growth and employee engagement.
Meta had just under 80,000 employees globally at the end of March before the latest reassignments and layoffs began.
