The layoffs will affect Meta‘s business units, potentially affecting thousands of employees. Although the company’s executives did not confirm the specific size of the layoffs, Zuckerberg said in March of this year that the company planned to cut 10,000 jobs by the end of May and it had cut 4,000 jobs last month.
The afternoon before layoffs occur, the head of human resources at Meta will post a note to employees with details on when the layoff process begins and which teams will be affected. Affected employees will then be notified, followed by unaffected employees. The company will require all employees “whose work allows” to work from home.
Downsizing is one of the clearest examples of how big tech companies are due to over-hiring during the pandemic combined with massive changes in the tech industry at large. It is tightening its belts after nearly two decades of relentless growth.
Metaverse, a technology once famous when CEO Mark Zuckerberg envisioned a future where billions of people would live, work and play in the digital world, has almost “died” after being abandoned by the business world.
In October 2021, Facebook changed its name to Meta and turned to building virtual universes. After a well-known debut, the metaverse immediately became a craze for Wall Street investors. However, the hype couldnt save the lack of a consistent vision for the final product that led to the demise of the virtual world universe.
In the context that the technological world is moving to a new and more potential trend like AI, the fate of the metaverse is already predetermined.
Recent comments by Mark Zuckerberg and the company‘s management show that the company focuses on AI (artificial intelligence) and no longer prioritizes the metaverse. Chief Technology Officer (CTO) Andrew Bosworth said the company focuses most of its time on AI. Facebook’s parent company plans to launch an AI ad-generating tool later this year.
However, on April 26, Mark Zuckerberg denied “abandoning” the metaverse to focus on developing AI. He said Meta has been developing both areas for many years now and will continue to focus on both.
The companys virtual reality projects division reported an operating loss of $3.9 billion for the first quarter of 2023. This is slightly lower than its $4.3 billion loss in the previous quarter.