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Meta lays off hundreds across Reality Labs, recruiting, and sales amid $135B AI bet

Meta began cutting hundreds of jobs on Wednesday across Reality Labs, Facebook, recruiting, sales, and global operations, according to people familiar with the matter and LinkedIn posts from affected employees. The layoffs are the latest in a rolling series of workforce reductions that have accelerated sharply in 2026, as the company redirects resources toward artificial intelligence and away from divisions that no longer sit at the centre of Mark Zuckerberg’s strategic vision.

Meta is laying off hundreds of employees as it pours money into AI

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Meta grants executives up to $921M in stock options as it lays off 700

Meta disclosed in SEC filings on Tuesday that it had granted stock options to six of its most senior executives, the first such awards since the company’s 2012 IPO. Hours later, it laid off approximately 700 employees across Reality Labs, recruiting, sales, and Facebook. The options are worthless unless Meta’s market capitalisation reaches $9 trillion by March 2031, roughly six times its current valuation of approximately $1.5 trillion. If it does, four of the six executives stand to earn up to $921 million each.