Meta cuts 10%, about 8,000 roles

Meta told employees on April 23 that it will cut about 8,000 jobs, or roughly 10% of its workforce, and scrap 6,000 open roles. (cnbc.com) The first layoffs are set to begin May 20, according to an internal memo reported by CNBC and Bloomberg. Meta had 78,865 employees as of Dec. 31, 2025. (cnbc.com) (sec.gov) The company is making the cuts while increasing spending on artificial intelligence, which Meta has described as its central operating focus for 2026. In January, Meta said AI would intensify across products, ads and internal work. (about.fb.com) (cnbc.com) Meta’s ad business is one reason the AI push matters inside the company. In January, Meta said new AI systems lifted engagement on Facebook, Instagram and Threads and improved ad performance, including a 24% increase in incremental conversions from a fourth-quarter model rollout. (about.fb.com) The layoffs also continue a broader restructuring that has already hit other teams this year. CNBC reported in January that Meta cut about 10% of employees working on metaverse projects, including roughly 1,000 people in Reality Labs. (cnbc.com) Another round of layoffs began in March and affected hundreds of workers across Facebook, Reality Labs, global operations and sales, CNBC reported. Meta also said in March that it would move away from some third-party vendors and contractors handling content moderation in favor of more AI tools. (cnbc.com) (about.fb.com) The new cuts land after Meta had already reduced its workforce from 86,482 employees at the end of 2022 to 78,865 at the end of 2025. That means the company is shrinking headcount again even after several earlier efficiency drives. (sec.gov) (cnbc.com) Meta has not publicly framed the move as a retreat from growth. Its January earnings release said 2025 delivered “strong business performance,” even as Zuckerberg pushed the company deeper into AI products, infrastructure and hiring around that strategy. (sec.gov) (about.fb.com) For employees, the next concrete date is May 20. For Meta, the cuts show that even a profitable ad business is not preventing more job reductions as the company redirects money and management attention toward AI. (cnbc.com)