CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced on Tuesday that Meta will close hiring for 5,000 open roles and lay off an additional 10,000 employees through multiple rounds of cuts over the coming months. This comes just four months after the company laid off 11,000 employees last November.
According to a memo posted on Mark Zuckerberg’s Facebook page, the first wave of layoffs will start this week and impact Meta’s recruiting organization. This will be followed by a second wave in April, which will focus on tech roles, and a third wave in May, which will target business roles. Zuckerberg expressed his hope to make these organizational changes as soon as possible in the year so that the company can move past the period of uncertainty and focus on critical work ahead.
During an earnings call in February, Zuckerberg said he wants to make this the “year of efficiency.” He plans on “flattening” the company’s “structure and removing some layers of middle management to make decisions faster,” even as the company continues to spend billions to build out its vision of the metaverse.
Despite sinking revenue and massive job cuts, Meta is still betting big on the future. In addition to launching a new Quest 3 headset later this year, the company is planning a bevy of AR and VR hardware devices over the next several years. It is also looking to keep up with its Big Tech counterparts by establishing teams dedicated to building tools powered by artificial intelligence and AI “personas.” Its first pair of AR glasses is planned for 2027.
