Meta shifts 7,000 workers into AI roles as restructuring looms
Meta will lay off roughly 10% of its workforce this week and reassign 7,000 employees to AI-focused teams as part of a broad organizational overhaul tied to CEO Mark Zuckerberg's push to remake the company around artificial intelligence.
The restructuring, outlined in an internal memo from Chief People Officer Janelle Gale, will ultimately affect about 20% of Meta's workforce. The company employed nearly 78,000 people as of March.
Employees being reassigned - referred to internally as being "drafted" - are moving into teams like Applied AI Engineering and Agent Transformation Accelerator. These groups focus on building AI systems capable of performing workplace functions autonomously.
Flatter structures, management cuts
Meta is eliminating layers of management and flattening organizational structures across the company. Gale said many teams can operate with smaller pods that move faster and have more ownership.
"Many of them incorporated AI native design principles into their new org structures," Gale wrote in the memo.
The company also closed roughly 6,000 open job postings during the restructuring process, a move that has triggered backlash among employees.
What this means for managers
For managers, the restructuring signals a significant shift in how Meta operates. The move toward flatter hierarchies and smaller teams means fewer management layers and a different approach to oversight and decision-making.
Understanding how AI agents and autonomous systems work is becoming essential for leaders managing teams in this new structure. Learn more about AI for Management and AI Agents & Automation to stay current with industry changes.
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