• Meta announced cuts of about 600 jobs from its AI division, affecting several units.
• The layoffs are concentrated in its legacy AI research, product, and infrastructure teams.
• Employees impacted can apply for other positions within the company.
• Meta's restructuring reflects an effort to streamline decision-making and enhance individual contributions.
• The company recently engaged in a $27 billion financing deal to fuel its AI ambitions.

Meta is cutting roughly 600 positions in its artificial intelligence division as part of a strategic move to enhance efficiency and competition with rivals, according to reports by Channel News Asia, LA Times, and SFGATE.

The layoffs will primarily impact workers in Meta's legacy AI research team and its product and infrastructure units, leaving the newly formed TBD Lab unit untouched. Chief AI Officer Alexandr Wang indicated that fewer employees would streamline the decision-making process, empowering remaining staff with more significant responsibilities, as stated in a memo disseminated to employees. "By reducing the size of our team, fewer conversations will be required to make a decision," Wang noted in the memo LA Times, SFGATE.

Employees learned of their job status on Wednesday, with opportunities to apply for other roles within Meta. Those laid off will enter a "non-working notice period" until November 21, during which they can seek new positions or accept severance packages providing at least 16 weeks of pay SFGATE. This restructuring follows Meta's aggressive hiring strategy to bolster its AI capabilities, having recently hired Wang from ScaleAI to lead these efforts Channel News Asia.

This job cut also represents a significant shift in Meta's operational strategy amidst growing competition in the AI sector from other tech giants like Google and Microsoft. CEO Mark Zuckerberg has emphasized that a smaller, more talented team is preferable for making breakthroughs in AI. "You actually kind of want the smallest group of people who can fit the whole thing in their head," he commented during a recent discussion regarding the development of AI technology LA Times, SFGATE.

In connection to its personnel changes, Meta also secured a $27 billion financing deal to support its extensive AI initiatives, marking its largest private capital agreement to date. This investment is seen as crucial for advancing Meta's capabilities in building large-scale AI infrastructure Channel News Asia and LA Times.