Executives are reportedly considering cutting up to 20% of Meta’s workforce, which would amount to roughly 16,000 jobs out of nearly 79,000 employees. No final date or confirmed figure has been announced.

Meta spokesperson Andy Stone dismissed the reports as “speculative reporting about theoretical approaches.”

CEO Mark Zuckerberg is investing aggressively in generative AI. Reports point to a plan involving $600 billion for AI technology, infrastructure, and workforce expansion through 2028, alongside expensive recruiting of AI researchers and acquisitions such as the Chinese startup Manus.

Zuckerberg said in January that projects which previously required large teams could now be handled by individuals, reflecting a broader industry expectation that AI will reduce the need for certain types of labor.

Meta is not alone. Amazon and Block have also recently carried out cuts that were at least partly linked to AI. At the same time, Amazon has reportedly started to slow its push around AI-generated code after too many errors appeared, suggesting that the efficiency story remains uneven in practice. In Block’s case, AI may have played a role in the cuts, but likely was not the only factor.

Conclusion

The Meta reports underline a growing shift in big tech: AI is no longer just an investment theme, but also a justification for reshaping headcount. Even so, the gap between promised efficiency gains and the real-world limits of AI tools may make this transition messier than executives suggest.