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Meta Platforms is preparing for yet another round of job cuts, with over 200 roles set to be eliminated across its California's Silicon Valley office this year.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has previously made his plans crystal clear to focus more on AI generative projects only. This move is the continued push to streamline operations while funnelling billions into artificial intelligence infrastructure.
Regulatory filings with California’s Employment Development Department reveal that 124 positions will be cut at Meta’s Burlingame office, alongside 74 roles at its Sunnyvale location. The layoffs are permanent, with the Burlingame reductions scheduled for May 22 and the Sunnyvale cuts following on May 29.
The latest reductions add to a growing tally of job losses at the social media giant in 2026. In March alone, Meta trimmed around 700 roles spanning recruiting, sales, operations and its Reality Labs division. Earlier in January, the company had already slashed roughly 1,500 positions within its augmented and virtual reality unit .
The cuts come against the backdrop of a broader restructuring strategy. Last month, reports suggested that Meta is planning to reduce as much as 20 per cent of its workforce as it seeks to offset the escalating costs of AI development while improving efficiency through AI-assisted workflows.
Meta has been steadily pivoting its focus towards AI, investing heavily in infrastructure and talent, even as it pares back spending in other areas. The latest layoffs reflect the balancing act facing large tech firms as they race to scale AI capabilities without letting costs spiral.
The company is reportedly preparing to invest as much as $600 billion in data centre capacity by 2028, a staggering figure that highlights the immense computing power required to train and run next-generation AI systems. This expansion is expected to underpin Meta’s growing portfolio of AI-driven products and services.
Alongside infrastructure, Meta has also been active on the deal-making front. It recently acquired Moltbook, a platform geared towards AI agents, and is said to be committing at least $2 billion to purchase Manus, according to earlier reports. These moves reflect a broader effort to strengthen its foothold in the rapidly evolving AI ecosystem.
Zuckerberg has suggested that these investments are already beginning to pay off internally. Speaking in January, he noted that advances in AI are transforming how work gets done at Meta, with tasks that once required entire teams now achievable by “a single very talented person.”
However, the company’s AI journey has not been without setbacks. Its Llama 4 system faced criticism last year over its benchmark performance, raising questions about transparency and competitiveness. Meta also shelved plans to release its largest model, codenamed Behemoth, in a move that underscored the technical and strategic challenges involved in scaling cutting-edge AI.
Taken together, Meta’s investments and missteps illustrate both the promise and complexity of building at the frontier of artificial intelligence.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has previously made his plans crystal clear to focus more on AI generative projects only. This move is the continued push to streamline operations while funnelling billions into artificial intelligence infrastructure.
Meta layoffs 2026
Regulatory filings with California’s Employment Development Department reveal that 124 positions will be cut at Meta’s Burlingame office, alongside 74 roles at its Sunnyvale location. The layoffs are permanent, with the Burlingame reductions scheduled for May 22 and the Sunnyvale cuts following on May 29.
The latest reductions add to a growing tally of job losses at the social media giant in 2026. In March alone, Meta trimmed around 700 roles spanning recruiting, sales, operations and its Reality Labs division. Earlier in January, the company had already slashed roughly 1,500 positions within its augmented and virtual reality unit .
The cuts come against the backdrop of a broader restructuring strategy. Last month, reports suggested that Meta is planning to reduce as much as 20 per cent of its workforce as it seeks to offset the escalating costs of AI development while improving efficiency through AI-assisted workflows.
Meta's interest in AI infrastructure
Meta has been steadily pivoting its focus towards AI, investing heavily in infrastructure and talent, even as it pares back spending in other areas. The latest layoffs reflect the balancing act facing large tech firms as they race to scale AI capabilities without letting costs spiral.
The company is reportedly preparing to invest as much as $600 billion in data centre capacity by 2028, a staggering figure that highlights the immense computing power required to train and run next-generation AI systems. This expansion is expected to underpin Meta’s growing portfolio of AI-driven products and services.
Alongside infrastructure, Meta has also been active on the deal-making front. It recently acquired Moltbook, a platform geared towards AI agents, and is said to be committing at least $2 billion to purchase Manus, according to earlier reports. These moves reflect a broader effort to strengthen its foothold in the rapidly evolving AI ecosystem.
Zuckerberg has suggested that these investments are already beginning to pay off internally. Speaking in January, he noted that advances in AI are transforming how work gets done at Meta, with tasks that once required entire teams now achievable by “a single very talented person.”
However, the company’s AI journey has not been without setbacks. Its Llama 4 system faced criticism last year over its benchmark performance, raising questions about transparency and competitiveness. Meta also shelved plans to release its largest model, codenamed Behemoth, in a move that underscored the technical and strategic challenges involved in scaling cutting-edge AI.
Taken together, Meta’s investments and missteps illustrate both the promise and complexity of building at the frontier of artificial intelligence.
