NEW YORK CITY/SAN FRANCISCO: Meta Platforms is set to begin a major round of layoffs on May 20 as part of a broader restructuring tied to its aggressive push into artificial intelligence, with additional job cuts expected later this year.

The parent of Facebook and Instagram plans to reduce its global workforce by about 10 percent, roughly 8,000 employees, in the first wave, according to three sources familiar with the matter.

Further layoffs are expected in the second half of 2026, though details on the scale and timing remain undecided, the sources said. Executives may adjust plans depending on how artificial intelligence capabilities evolve.

Reuters reported last month that Meta was considering cutting 20 percent or more of its workforce overall.

The company declined to comment on the timing or scale of the layoffs.

Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg has been investing heavily in artificial intelligence, committing hundreds of billions of dollars to reshape the company's operations around the technology. The move reflects a broader trend across the technology sector, where companies are cutting jobs even as they increase spending on AI.

Other firms have taken similar steps. Amazon has trimmed about 30,000 corporate roles in recent months, nearly 10 percent of its white-collar workforce, while fintech firm Block cut nearly half of its staff earlier this year. In both cases, executives linked the reductions to efficiency gains from AI.

Globally, tech layoffs have continued at a rapid pace. According to Layoffs.fyi, more than 73,000 workers have lost their jobs so far this year, compared with around 153,000 in all of 2024.

For Meta, the planned cuts mark its most significant workforce reduction since its "year of efficiency" in 2022 and 2023, when the company eliminated about 21,000 jobs amid declining stock performance and a post-pandemic slowdown.

This time, however, Meta is in a stronger financial position. The company generated more than $200 billion in revenue and $60 billion in profit last year, even as it ramped up spending on AI initiatives.

Executives are now focusing on creating a leaner organization with fewer layers of management, supported by AI-driven tools and automation.

Meta employed nearly 79,000 people as of the end of December, according to its latest regulatory filing.

As part of its restructuring, the company has reorganized teams within its Reality Labs division and shifted engineers into a newly formed "Applied AI" group tasked with developing AI agents capable of writing code and performing complex tasks autonomously.

Some employees are also expected to be reassigned to Meta Small Business, a unit launched last month as part of the company's evolving strategy, one source said.

The company's shares have risen about 3.7 percent since the start of the year, though they remain below record highs reached last summer.