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NPR Topics: News | Meta will lay off 10% of its staff by John Ruwitch

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Meta announced it will cut 10 % of its workforce—about 8,000 employees—on May 20 and will freeze hiring for roughly 6,000 open positions, according to an internal memo confirmed by a spokesperson. Chief People Officer Janelle Gale said the move is meant to run the company more efficiently and offset large AI investments, acknowledging the difficult trade‑off for staff who have contributed meaningfully. The layoffs come as Meta ramps up spending on artificial‑intelligence infrastructure—forecasting up to $135 billion in capital expenditures this year, nearly double last year—while lagging behind rivals such as OpenAI, Anthropic and Google, and simultaneously scales back its Metaverse push, including a separate 700‑person cut in the Reality Labs division. At the same time, Meta faces significant legal challenges: a New Mexico jury found the company failed to protect young users from sexual exploitation, exposing it to potential penalties of up to $375 million, and a Los Angeles jury held Meta (along with Google) liable for a woman's mental‑health harms, awarding $6 million; the firm plans to appeal both cases amid other pending lawsuits.

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