Internal turmoil at Meta! Zuckerberg announced a 5% reduction in nearly 3,600 employees, in order to layout the development of AI, smart glasses, and social media.

Following his announcement of making 2023 the 'Year of Efficiency', Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook, announced on New Year's Day in 2025 that the company will lay off 5% of its employees and adjust the remuneration for those with poor performance. Zuckerberg stated that the main goal of this layoff is to retain the strong and eliminate the weak, while also positioning itself for future development in AI, smart glasses, and social media.

Meta lays off 5%, about 3,600 employees

According to Bloomberg, Meta currently has about 72,000 employees, and this layoff accounts for about 5%, affecting approximately 3,600 positions. Zuckerberg stated in an internal memo: 'Meta used to gradually eliminate underperforming employees within a year, but this time it will raise the evaluation standard to quickly complete the personnel adjustment.'

According to informed sources, the Meta layoff notice will begin in the United States on 2/10, while the notices for other countries will be slightly later. In addition, only employees who have completed the internal performance evaluation at Meta will be considered for the layoff. Meta also promises to provide reasonable severance pay to laid-off employees.

High standard performance management, retain the strong and eliminate the weak

Zuckerberg emphasized that this round of layoffs is not only a streamlining of manpower, but also a part of enhancing competitiveness. He said, 'Meta hopes to have the strongest team so that we can attract and accommodate more new talents.'

The performance appraisal period for Meta will end in February. At that time, each department will re-evaluate and adjust personnel allocation based on the proportion of layoffs last year. There is internal news indicating that Meta expects the total workforce to decrease by about 10% after this performance appraisal, including a 5% reduction due to natural attrition, such as resignations or retirements following last year's layoffs, and a 5% reduction from this round of layoffs.

AI and new technologies are the core strategic focus, and the wave of layoffs in the technology industry continues to burn.

In the statement, Zuckerberg also mentioned that 2025 will be a "critical year", and Meta will focus on the future development of AI, smart glasses, and social media. This shows Meta's high regard for cutting-edge technology and innovation, and hopes to optimize the company's resource allocation through layoffs to support the development of these areas.

Not only Meta, but other tech giants have also joined the New Year's layoff ranks. According to foreign media reports, Microsoft has recently carried out a wave of layoffs targeting low-performing employees. This reflects that the tech industry is accelerating internal personnel adjustments in the face of high inflation and economic uncertainty.

(Technology stocks under pressure, Bitcoin holds steady at 96K, market focuses on CPI)

This article Meta is shaking internally! Zuckerberg announced a 5% layoff of nearly 3,600 employees, for the development of AI, smart glasses, and social media layout. First appeared on Chain News ABMedia.