Meta layoffs reportedly imminent as HR tells wearables and ads departments to work from home

Staff members within Meta $META -3.99%'s advertising and wearables units were directed to work from home for the day ahead of anticipated mass job cuts. According to Business Insider, two people who received the human resources memo said it instructed workers to operate from home and mentioned that executives planned to distribute further details.

Upwards of a fifth of the technology giant’s staff could be eliminated, drawing from a total headcount of 79,000 recorded in late 2025. An impact of that size would translate to at least 15,000 lost roles, representing the firm’s deepest staffing reduction since shedding 11,000 workers in the latter part of 2022.

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A Meta spokesperson declined to comment to Business Insider regarding the remote work directive, but told CNBC in a separate inquiry that reports of a 20 percent workforce reduction were speculative.

These expected job cuts come as Meta shifts its spending toward developing artificial intelligence technology. CEO Mark Zuckerberg has said that 2026 will be an important year for the company’s AI goals. Disclosures from January indicate the business plans to spend between $115 billion and $135 billion on artificial intelligence infrastructure throughout the current year, which is twice the amount deployed in 2025. During the previous year, the tech giant poured $14.3 billion into Scale AI before recruiting its leader, Alexandr Wang.

The broader downsizing follows targeted reductions earlier this year, when the business dismissed between 10 percent and 15 percent of workers in its Reality Labs division. The company still considers its wearables segment—responsible for producing artificial intelligence-integrated eyewear and augmented reality products—a crucial focus for funding. Data from Challenger Gray & Christmas shows that artificial intelligence has been cited in upwards of 12,000 eliminated domestic roles so far this year. Amazon $AMZN -3.95%, Atlassian $TEAM -4.42%, and Block $SQ NaN% have all announced workforce reductions this year to reallocate resources toward artificial intelligence.

According to Business Insider, the firm’s share price has fallen by three percent over the past 12 months, though CNBC noted a separate three percent gain earlier this week that followed a four percent decline late last week. Concurrently, the business rolled out a fresh equity reward system for top management, granting options and restricted shares tied to a March 2031 deadline.

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