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Meta's New Reality: Record High Profits. Record Low Morale (Wired, 5/14/26)
https://www.wired.com/story/meta-layoffs-bad-vibes-mark-zuckerberg-ai/-snip-
The social media giant plans to cut about 10 percent of its workforce, or nearly 8,000 people, “to run the company more efficiently” and “offset the other investments” it’s making, according to a human resources leader. But the layoffs, which will add to the roughly 25,000 cuts Meta has announced over the past four years, are far from the only cause of rock-bottom morale.
Widening pay gaps among employees, courtroom losses for the company, and mandatory role changes for hundreds of top engineers have also contributed to what employees view as a uniquely grim atmosphere inside Meta. Yet another issue has been the recent installation of corporate software on employees’ computers to track their activity solely in the name of training AI, according to 16 current and former employees from a variety of roles who spoke with WIRED. They declined to be named because of company policies barring unsanctioned conversations with journalists.
-snip-
Anyone who can afford to leave is hoping to be laid off and receive the 16 weeks minimum of severance and 18 months of paid health care that come with it, several people say. As the Instagram employee put it, “Everyone is just like, do it now, jesus fucking christ.” Only the individuals with the best pay packages and involved in the core development of AI seem to be thriving, a longtime senior leader at Meta says.
-snip-
Meta employees’ use of AI is tracked, and they receive data about their usage relative to groups of other colleagues. Vice presidents generally understand that their performance is judged partly based on driving automation in their units, according to someone who has spoken with one of the executives. Meta’s Clayton denies performance philosophies have changed, saying people are evaluated on their impact and have been asked “to embrace AI for themselves and their organizations to enhance productivity.” He says adopting AI is “a well-known” company priority and the company is “focused on using AI to help employees with their day-to-day work."
-snip-
The social media giant plans to cut about 10 percent of its workforce, or nearly 8,000 people, “to run the company more efficiently” and “offset the other investments” it’s making, according to a human resources leader. But the layoffs, which will add to the roughly 25,000 cuts Meta has announced over the past four years, are far from the only cause of rock-bottom morale.
Widening pay gaps among employees, courtroom losses for the company, and mandatory role changes for hundreds of top engineers have also contributed to what employees view as a uniquely grim atmosphere inside Meta. Yet another issue has been the recent installation of corporate software on employees’ computers to track their activity solely in the name of training AI, according to 16 current and former employees from a variety of roles who spoke with WIRED. They declined to be named because of company policies barring unsanctioned conversations with journalists.
-snip-
Anyone who can afford to leave is hoping to be laid off and receive the 16 weeks minimum of severance and 18 months of paid health care that come with it, several people say. As the Instagram employee put it, “Everyone is just like, do it now, jesus fucking christ.” Only the individuals with the best pay packages and involved in the core development of AI seem to be thriving, a longtime senior leader at Meta says.
-snip-
Meta employees’ use of AI is tracked, and they receive data about their usage relative to groups of other colleagues. Vice presidents generally understand that their performance is judged partly based on driving automation in their units, according to someone who has spoken with one of the executives. Meta’s Clayton denies performance philosophies have changed, saying people are evaluated on their impact and have been asked “to embrace AI for themselves and their organizations to enhance productivity.” He says adopting AI is “a well-known” company priority and the company is “focused on using AI to help employees with their day-to-day work."
-snip-