Meta began slashing thousands of jobs Wednesday morning amid the company’s push to transform into an artificial intelligence-first company.
Employees at Facebook and Instagram’s parent company were told last month that roughly 8,000 employees would lose their jobs in May amid a larger AI restructuring. This week, an additional 7,000 workers learned they’d be reassigned to new AI-focused roles.
Workers in Singapore began receiving emails about layoffs early Wednesday morning, with Meta employees around the world told to work remotely as job-cut emails went out.
It was not immediately clear Wednesday how Austin-based Meta employees, who work in the company’s downtown high-rise offices, were impacted by the cuts.
The cuts amount to about 10% of the company’s workforce. The company employed about 78,000 people at the end of last year, including about 2,000 in the greater Austin area, according to Opportunity Austin’s most recent job totals.
Meta Platforms Inc. has spent more than $70 billion on AI, including data centers and chips, with CEO Mark Zuckerberg telling investors the company plans to spend between $115 billion and $135 billion on AI this year.
The social media company is not the only major tech company to slash jobs amid larger AI pushes.
Last week, LinkedIn cut about 5% of its workforce, including about 600 in California. The company did not say whether Austin employees were included in job cuts.
This year, Austin-based Oracle significantly reduced its workforce, cutting an estimated 25,000 to 30,000 jobs worldwide. Several Austin employees flocked to social media after the news to confirm they, along with entire teams, had lost their jobs.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.