Meta is laying off several hundred employees across key divisions — including Facebook and its Reality Labs unit — as it overhauls the company for the artificial intelligence era.
The layoffs also come as Meta pulls back from its costly metaverse push after pouring tens of billions into virtual reality with limited payoff.
The company has shifted resources away from immersive worlds and toward artificial intelligence and wearable tech, betting those areas offer faster growth and clearer returns as demand for VR headsets cools and investor enthusiasm fades.
“Teams across Meta regularly restructure or implement changes to ensure they’re in the best position to achieve their goals,” a Meta spokesperson told The Post. News of the layoffs was first reported by the Information.
“Where possible, we are finding other opportunities for employees whose positions may be impacted.”
The cuts will affect just a tiny percentage of Meta’s overall 78,000-strong global workforce.
The cuts come as CEO Mark Zuckerberg pushes aggressively into artificial intelligence, saying earlier this year: “I think 2026 is going to be the year that AI starts to dramatically change the way that we work.”
Zuckerberg has said Meta is flattening teams and leaning on AI tools to boost productivity.
Some affected employees are being offered alternative roles within the company, though certain positions may require relocation, one person told the Information.
The latest cuts follow earlier job reductions at the social media giant, including roughly 1,500 positions eliminated in its Reality Labs division in January.
Meta also slashed about 5% of its lowest-performing employees last year as part of an ongoing effort to streamline operations.
Reports earlier this month suggested Meta could cut as much as 20% of its workforce this year, though the company has dismissed those claims as “speculative.”
The restructuring comes as Meta ramps up spending on artificial intelligence, projecting between $115 billion and $135 billion in capital expenditures this year — a roughly 75% jump from the prior year.
Much of that spending is earmarked for data centers, servers and other infrastructure needed to power advanced AI systems.
Meta has also forecast a roughly 40% increase in operating expenses, driven in part by higher compensation tied to hiring technical talent.
Shares of Meta have shed nearly 10% since Jan. 1. The stock was trading near even at $598.24 per share around noon Eastern time Wednesday.
