Amidst the rapid advancements in artificial intelligence, technology giants are re-evaluating their strategies and optimizing their resources in this field. These changes are also manifesting in companies' AI-related research and development activities. This process is accompanied by the dissolution or reorganization of some departments, as well as the creation of new teams.
Redaksiya reports that Meta plans to lay off approximately 600 employees in its old artificial intelligence research division. This information was published in "Axios". According to reports, the layoffs will affect Meta's "Fundamental AI Research" (FAIR) division. At the same time, the company continues to recruit for its newly formed superintelligence team, "TBD Lab".
Meta had started recruiting in the AI sector after investing $14.3 billion in Scale AI and hiring CEO Alexandr Wang in June. A few months later, it halted recruitment and announced a restructuring that would focus on AI-related products and infrastructure. Concurrently, Meta's AI research team has taken a backseat. Joelle Pineau, head of FAIR, left her position earlier this year. In August, Wang, head of Meta AI, stated that Meta aimed to integrate many research ideas and projects from FAIR into larger model implementations carried out by "TBD Lab" and scale them up. Now, while Meta is hiring high-profile employees for "TBD Lab", it is reducing roles within FAIR. According to a memo from Wang seen by "Axios", "By reducing the size of our team, fewer conversations will be required to make decisions, and each individual will carry more weight, having greater scope and impact." The layoffs will also affect roles in the AI product and infrastructure teams, but Meta will allow affected employees to apply for other roles within the company. "The Verge" contacted Meta for comment on the incident.