"Meta is cutting about 600 positions from its artificial intelligence division as part of a broader restructuring aimed at improving efficiency and accelerating progress toward next-generation AI systems. The changes come as the company continues hiring for its new TBD Lab, which focuses on advancing Meta's work in superintelligence. According to an internal memo obtained by Axios, Chief AI Officer Alexandr Wang said the company's long-standing AI operations had become too bureaucratic. The restructuring, he wrote, will "reduce the number of conversations required to make decisions" and give each remaining team member "more scope and impact.""
"Cuts Target Legacy AI Units The layoffs affect several of Meta's legacy AI organizations, including the FAIR (Fundamental AI Research) group, product-focused AI teams, and AI infrastructure units. The newly formed TBD Lab will not be impacted. U.S. employees were notified by 7 a.m. Pacific time, whether their roles were affected. Wang noted that Meta encourages displaced staff to apply for other positions within the company, emphasizing that their expertise remains valuable. " This is a talented group of individuals, and we need their skills in other parts of the company, " he said."
"New Hires Signal Strategic Shift While reducing older teams, Meta is actively recruiting talent for the TBD Lab. The company recently hired Ananya Kumar, a research scientist formerly with OpenAI, and Andrew Tulloch, co-founder of Thinking Machines. The lab is central to Meta's renewed push to build scalable, high-performance AI systems and integrate them more deeply into its products. Driving the Overhaul Sources told Axios that CEO Mark Zuckerberg began questioning the results of Meta's existing AI efforts several months ago."
Meta is eliminating about 600 positions from its artificial intelligence division to improve efficiency and accelerate development of next-generation AI systems. The layoffs target legacy AI organizations including FAIR, product-focused AI teams, and AI infrastructure units, while the newly formed TBD Lab remains unaffected. Chief AI Officer Alexandr Wang described longstanding AI operations as too bureaucratic and said the restructuring will reduce decision-making conversations and increase remaining team members' scope and impact. U.S. employees were notified early and encouraged to apply for other roles. Meta continues hiring for the TBD Lab and has made recent high-profile hires. The shift coincides with a $15 billion investment in Scale AI.
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