Meta Layoffs: Nearly 8,000 Job Cuts Coming on May 20
Meta, Facebook's parent company, intends to begin the first round of major workforce reductions planned for 2026 on May 20 with the elimination of roughly 10% of its global staff, or close to 8,000 employees, according to people familiar with the plans.
The Facebook and Instagram parent will follow that initial cut with additional layoffs in the second half of the year, though executives have not yet finalized the size or exact timing of those reductions and may adjust them based on progress in artificial intelligence tools. The company employed nearly 79,000 people at the end of 2025.
Meta declined to comment on the timing or scope of the planned cuts. The information comes from three sources who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity.
The move aligns with a broader shift under chief executive Mark Zuckerberg, who has directed hundreds of billions of dollars into AI infrastructure and product development.
In recent weeks the tech giant has reorganized teams inside its Reality Labs division and moved engineers across the organization into a new Applied AI unit focused on building agents capable of writing code and handling complex tasks on their own. Some staff members are also being shifted into a newly created Meta Small Business group.
This round would mark the largest set of cuts at the company since the 2022 and 2023 restructuring that eliminated about 21,000 positions during what Zuckerberg at the time called the year of efficiency.
At that point Meta was correcting for over-hiring during the pandemic while its stock price had fallen sharply.
The company now sits in a stronger financial position, having posted more than 200 billion dollars in revenue and 60 billion dollars in profit last year even as it maintained heavy AI spending.
The cuts mirror actions taken by other large technology firms that have also cited efficiency gains from artificial intelligence.
Amazon has removed about 30,000 corporate roles in recent months, equivalent to nearly 10% of its white-collar workforce, while fintech company Block reduced nearly half its staff.
Industry layoffs tracker Layoffs.fyi reports that more than 73,000 technology jobs have been lost globally so far in 2026.
The planned reductions come after smaller, targeted cuts earlier this year, including roughly 200 positions in California offices that were disclosed in state filings. Those earlier moves were framed by the company as routine team restructurings rather than part of a larger program.
Executives see the current changes as preparation for a future with fewer management layers and greater reliance on AI-assisted work. The company continues to hire selectively for roles tied directly to its AI priorities.
