Meta has notified roughly 8,000 employees, or 10% of its ~80,000 workforce, that they are being laid off in a first wave of a companywide restructuring aimed at reallocating resources toward AI initiatives. North American staff were asked to work remotely on notification day, and American workers will receive a minimum of 16 weeks' severance plus two additional weeks per year of service, with 18 months of health coverage extension.

Under CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Meta projects 2026 capital expenditures between $125 billion and $145 billion—over twice its 2025 outlay—as it sharpens focus on AI capabilities and engineering. Alongside cuts, roughly 7,000 employees will be transitioned into new Applied AI Engineering, Agent Transformation Accelerator XFN, and Central Analytics teams, streamlining managerial layers into smaller, faster-moving pods.

In Europe, Meta proposed limited free access to WhatsApp's business API for rival AI chatbots until specific messaging thresholds are reached, after which providers would pay fees. The move is designed to preempt interim measures by EU regulators seeking to preserve competition in AI digital markets, though some smaller AI companies have criticized the plan as insufficient.