Meta Employees Protest Over AI-powered Mouse Tracking Tech Ahead Of Layoffs

Amid the ongoing layoffs at Mark Zuckerberg-owned social media platform Meta, employees in the US have started protesting against a new software tool that tracks how they use their computers. According to a Reuters report, workers handed out pamphlets at several Meta offices, saying the company is keeping a closer watch on employees at work."Workers at several Meta offices in the US distributed pamphlets in meeting rooms, on vending machines, and even inside washrooms. The flyers urged employees to sign an online petition opposing the company’s mouse-tracking technology," Reuters said in its report. One of the pamphlets asked -- "Don't want to work at the Employee Data Extraction Factory"The protest comes just days before the social media giant

is expected to cut around 10 per cent of its workforce. Many employees believe the tracking software is being used to collect data that could help train AI systems which may eventually replace some human jobs.Meta Is Tracking Employees For AI Work, Mark Zuckerberg Hints At More Layoffs

Meta has defended the tool. Company spokesperson Andy Stone said the software helps Meta gather real-world examples of how people use computers."If we're building agents to help people complete everyday tasks using computers, our models need real examples of how people actually use them --- things like mouse movements, clicking buttons and navigating dropdown menus," Stone told Reuters.The pamphlets and the petition both cite the US National Labor Relations Act, saying 'workers are legally protected when they ⁠choose to organise for the improvement of working conditions.'The dissatisfaction is not limited to the US. In the YK, some Meta employees have begun a unionisation campaign with the United Tech and Allied Workers (UTAW), which is part of the Communication Workers Union.UTAW organiser Eleanor Payne criticised Meta’s AI strategy, saying employees are dealing with job cuts, stricter surveillance and the possibility of being asked to train systems designed to replace them.