Liputan6.com, Jakarta Technology giant Meta Platforms Inc. is back in the spotlight after announcing the layoffs of approximately 600 employees in its artificial intelligence (AI) unit.
This decision was confirmed by a Meta spokesperson on Wednesday, October 22, 2025.
Advertisement
The layoff announcement was made via an internal memo by Meta's Chief AI Officer, Alexandr Wang, to hundreds of affected employees.
While the notification date was October 22, 2025, the effective date of the layoffs was set for November 21, 2025.
“During this time, your internal access will be removed and you do not need to do any additional work for Meta,” said the message, which was viewed by CNBC.
“You may use this time to search for another role at Meta.”
The Reasons Behind Meta's AI Unit Layoff
Meta's decision to lay off employees in its AI unit stems from the company's ambition to increase efficiency and agility.
Meta argued that its AI division had become too large, with multiple teams, such as Fundamental Artificial Intelligence Research (FAIR) and product-oriented groups.
When the new teams merged to form Superintelligence Labs, Meta's existing AI structure inherited this overcrowding.
These layoffs aim to streamline the division while also strengthening the vision and strategy of Alexandr Wang, the new Chief AI Officer who joined in June 2025.
These cuts specifically target employees in the AI infrastructure unit, Fundamental Artificial Intelligence Research (FAIR), as well as various positions related to product development.
However, the TBD Labs unit, which boasts many top-tier new AI talent hired last summer, was unaffected by this wave of layoffs, as reported by CNBC.
Meta AI Restructuring
These layoffs are an integral part of Meta's extensive restructuring of its AI efforts, marking the fourth in the past six months.
Meta plans to divide its new AI unit, Superintelligence Labs, into four main groups: the TBD Lab, the product team (including the Meta AI assistant), the infrastructure team, and the Fundamental AI Research (FAIR) lab.
This move aims to reorganize the tech giant so it can develop AI products more quickly and compete effectively with other companies.
Furthermore, Meta is actively exploring the use of third-party artificial intelligence models to support its AI products, rather than relying solely on internal models.
Meta Investment in the Future
The company has spent heavily on expanding its technology infrastructure and recruiting the world's best AI talent, including a $14.3 billion investment in Scale AI.
Mark Zuckerberg also stated that Meta will invest hundreds of billions of dollars in building several large AI data centers.
For affected employees, Meta is offering compensation in the form of 16 weeks of severance pay plus two weeks for each completed year of service.
The company is also encouraging them to apply for other internal positions, with the hope that most will find new roles within Meta.