--- title: "Details of Meta's Major Layoffs Emerge: Notifications Sent at 4 AM, 7,000 Employees Transferred to AI, Management Layers to Be Significantly Reduced" type: "News" locale: "en" url: "https://longbridge.com/en/news/286867902.md" description: "Countdown to Meta's largest-ever layoffs by the hour: At 4 AM, notifications for 8,000 positions were rolled out in three waves globally; meanwhile, over 7,000 employees were reassigned to new AI departments, and management layers were significantly compressed. The layoffs may not stop here; with AI capital expenditures projected to reach $145 billion by 2026, this organizational restructuring in the name of AI has only just begun" datetime: "2026-05-19T06:59:24.000Z" locales: - [zh-CN](https://longbridge.com/zh-CN/news/286867902.md) - [en](https://longbridge.com/en/news/286867902.md) - [zh-HK](https://longbridge.com/zh-HK/news/286867902.md) --- # Details of Meta's Major Layoffs Emerge: Notifications Sent at 4 AM, 7,000 Employees Transferred to AI, Management Layers to Be Significantly Reduced Meta's largest-ever personnel restructuring is advancing by the hour. Behind this layoff action involving nearly 8,000 positions lies a comprehensive organizational overhaul centered on AI. According to internal memos obtained by Business Insider and The Information, Meta's Head of Human Resources, Janelle Gale, issued an explanation to employees on Monday, disclosing the specific execution plan for the layoffs scheduled for this Wednesday (May 20): Layoff notifications will be sent at 4 AM (local time in each region), affecting approximately 8,000 positions, or about 10% of Meta's total workforce of nearly 78,000 employees. Proceeding in tandem with the layoffs is a large-scale redeployment of personnel—Meta will transfer over 7,000 employees to multiple new AI departments while significantly compressing management layers to promote organizational flattening. Meanwhile, internal friction among employees continues to intensify. Over 1,000 employees have signed a petition protesting the company's installation of mouse-tracking software, reflecting strained labor relations under the cloud of layoffs. Meta has made it clear to employees that the 10% layoff this Wednesday may not be the end, leaving open the possibility of further reductions. In April, the company projected that capital expenditures for 2026 would reach $125 billion to $145 billion, demonstrating its unreserved commitment to betting on AI. ## 4 AM: Three Waves of Notifications Cover the Globe In the memo, Gale detailed the execution pace for this Wednesday down to the hour: Notifications will be sent at 4 AM local time in each region, delivered in three waves across different time zones to cover Meta's global operations. This means employees from Asia-Pacific to Europe and then to the Americas will receive notifications in the late night or before dawn in their respective locations. One employee told Business Insider that everyone is currently in a state of "limbo," waiting to confirm the fate of their positions. ## 7,000 Employees Transferred to AI, Restructuring Goes Beyond Layoffs This personnel change is not merely a cost-cutting measure but involves large-scale strategic redeployment. According to The Information, Gale stated in the memo that productivity gains enabled by AI empowerment allow the company to transfer over 7,000 employees to several new departments, including Applied AI Engineering (AAI), Agent Transformation Accelerator, Central Analytics, and a newly established enterprise solutions team. The Information had previously reported that Meta had begun drawing top engineers from across the company to bolster the AAI department to enhance its competitiveness in the AI model race. Gale pointed out in the memo that leadership across various departments has incorporated "AI-native design principles" into the new organizational structure, with related adjustment plans to be announced simultaneously with the layoffs. ## Significant Reduction in Management Layers to Promote Organizational Flattening Gale explicitly stated in the memo that management positions would be cut company-wide, aiming to create a flatter hierarchical structure. "We have now reached a stage where many teams can operate under a flatter structure, acting faster and taking more ownership in smaller pods/cohorts," she wrote. Some teams within Meta's Reality Labs had already pioneered the restructuring into a small-pod architecture, a move previously reported by Business Insider. ## Over 1,000 Sign Petition Protesting Mouse Tracking, Internal Friction Surfaces Under the shadow of layoffs, another wave of collective employee pushback is brewing. Employees launched a petition protesting the company's installation of mouse-tracking software, with over 1,000 signatures, reflecting strong resistance to management's intensified monitoring measures. Several current employees told Business Insider that overall morale within the company is now under significant pressure. ## Further Layoffs Not Ruled Out as AI Investment Continues to Ramp Up Wednesday's layoffs are not the final chapter. Business Insider previously reported that Meta's management had informed employees that further staff reductions could follow this round of 10% cuts. While undergoing significant downsizing, Meta is accelerating its capital investment in AI. In April, the company projected that capital expenditures for 2026 would range between $125 billion and $145 billion, highlighting its massive bet on AI infrastructure—the most direct footnote to this restructuring driven by AI logic. ### Related Stocks - [META.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/META.US.md) - [METU.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/METU.US.md) - [METW.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/METW.US.md) ## Related News & Research - [Meta to launch 'Incognito Chat' for private AI conversations on WhatsApp](https://longbridge.com/en/news/286274974.md) - [RFG Advisory LLC Lowers Holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META](https://longbridge.com/en/news/286666905.md) - [Nectar Social Raises $30M Series A to Build the Agentic Operating System for Modern Marketing](https://longbridge.com/en/news/286426940.md) - [Meta to cut 8,000 jobs as $145B AI push accelerates](https://longbridge.com/en/news/286631224.md) - [What Is Going On With Meta Stock On Monday?](https://longbridge.com/en/news/286790893.md)