Meta cuts hundreds of AI jobs, bets on new agile Lab
The American tech company Meta has laid off hundreds of employees from its artificial intelligence (AI) division, while hiring new experts for its recently established TBD Lab, CE Report quotes Kosova Press.
According to Axios, Meta concluded that its long-standing AI projects had become too bureaucratic and slow, and the reorganization aims to create a more agile and efficient workflow.
“By reducing team size, there will be fewer cross-team consultations before decisions are made, and each member will have greater responsibility, authority, and impact,” wrote Meta’s AI chief Alexandr Wang in an internal memo obtained by Axios.
Meta is reportedly cutting about 600 jobs in its superintelligence lab, which employs thousands of people. The layoffs affect the FAIR research unit, AI product development teams, and AI infrastructure divisions, while the new TBD Lab remains unaffected.
The company has encouraged those affected to apply for other internal positions, expecting most to be rehired within Meta.
Sources told Axios that CEO Mark Zuckerberg expressed concern months ago that Meta’s existing AI projects were not delivering the desired results or technological breakthroughs. This led to the restructuring, the creation of TBD Lab, and a wave of new hires, coinciding with Meta’s €15 billion investment in Scale AI and the appointment of Alexander Wang as head of AI.
