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Meta layoffs begin with 4 am termination emails: Here’s what’s happening
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New DelhiMay 20, 2026 11:24 AM IST Meta is restructuring its workforce as the company expands its focus on AI initiatives. (Image: Meta/Magnific)Meta is reportedly gearing up for another round of major restructuring as it doubles down on artificial intelligence (AI). Based on details surfacing on the internet, the Mark Zuckerberg-led company could likely cut nearly 10 per cent of its workforce, impacting about 7000 to 8000 employees. At the same time, the company is also shifting thousands of its existing staff into AI-focused roles. The social media giant has started laying off staff from across its global offices. Reportedly, workers in its Singapore office claimed that they received termination mail as early as 4am local time on Wednesday, May 20.A report in Bloomberg claimed that thousands of Meta staff around the world got layoff emails early Wednesday morning. Reportedly, Singapore staff were the first to receive the notification. Similarly, employees in Europe and the US are also expected to receive such mail as per their respective time zones. Meanwhile, in an internal memo accessed by the publication, Meta’s Head of People, Janelle Gale, explained the company’s perspective on the move. Gale said that the company is at the stage where many organisations can operate with a flatter structure with smaller teams of pods/cohorts that can move fast with more ownership. The Meta executive asserted that with this the company believes it will make its staff more productive and the work more rewarding. On the other hand, in the run-up to the imminent layoffs, Meta has reportedly asked its employees to work from home. Earlier this week, Meta announced its plans to shift about 7,000 of its staff to AI-focused teams working on products and AI agents. In addition to the job cuts, Meta is also said to be scrapping about 6,000 open roles, bringing the total number of affected roles to about 14,000. What is happening? Meta’s move reflects a broader trend that is sweeping across the tech industry. Large companies are rapidly increasing their investments in generative AI, automation tools, and infrastructure while simultaneously cutting costs in traditional business areas. The ongoing restructuring at Meta is viewed by many analysts and industry observers as part of a wider shift in how companies are embracing an AI-driven future. The discussion around the layoffs has also triggered concerns about how AI may reshape employment. Some executives and commentators believe AI will eliminate the need for certain managerial and administrative positions, allowing companies to operate with leaner teams and flatter structures. On the other hand, many argue that AI will mainly transform jobs rather than completely replace workers.Story continues below this ad Beyond Meta, companies in sectors ranging from retail to logistics are closely watching how major tech firms integrate AI into their operations. At the same time, businesses are under intense pressure to invest in AI technologies to remain competitive, but many are hesitant to take on additional debt amid higher interest rates. As a result, workforce reductions are increasingly being viewed as one of the fastest ways to free up capital for AI investments. The wider impact The conversation has also sparked debate about the wider economic impact of AI-driven automation. Some observers caution that large-scale layoffs across industries could eventually affect government revenues and social welfare systems if fewer workers remain employed in traditional roles. Others argue that AI could create entirely new categories of jobs over time, much like previous technological revolutions. Despite the concerns, many experts believe AI adoption is inevitable and that workers who learn how to use AI tools effectively may remain valuable to employers. The growing consensus across industries is that understanding AI and integrating it into existing workflows could become one of the most important
Behind the stringent charges is the police claim that the riots were not organic but rather premeditated. Police have alleged that an “organised syndicate of outsiders” orchestrated the violence – a charge denied by the families of those arrested. Exactly a month since the workers’ protest in Noida, which turned violent on April 13, two accused – Aakriti Chaudhary (25), a history graduate from Delhi University who hails from Durgapur in West Bengal, and a former journalist from Lucknow, Satyam Verma – have been booked under the stringent National Security Act (NSA). “The two have been identified as active members of the Mazdoor Bigul Dasta and were found to have played a significant role in the violence, arson, and disorder during the protest,” the police claimed on Wednesday, adding that they allegedly incited people in different parts of the district and attempted to disrupt public order. Meanwhile, the court reserved the orders in 31 bail applications filed by people who were arrested in connection with the violence, Additional District Government Counsel (crime) Dharmendra Jaint confirmed.The Noida police also requested a three-day police custody for some of the accused, which the court listed for hearing on May 15. The protests and the violence that followed had prompted a police crackdown that led to 15 FIRs in which hundreds of people were booked and at least 60 put in jail. A month on, families of the accused – from a mason to a history major, from an NIT graduate to a private firm employee – say they are awaiting clarity on what happens next. While 1,200 people had been detained in the wake of the protests, most were released in subsequent days, while around 60 remain in jail, facing charges ranging from rioting to attempt to murder. A total of 15 cases were lodged in connection with the protests and violence, Gautam Budh Nagar Additional Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Rajeev Narain Mishra said. Behind the stringent charges is the police claim that the riots were not organic but rather premeditated. Police have alleged that an “organised syndicate of outsiders” orchestrated the violence – a charge denied by the families of those arrested. The family of Aakriti Chaudhary, against whom the police invoked the NSA on Wednesday, claimed she was picked up from the Botanical Garden Metro station in Noida on April 11. Police had said she was initially detained for disturbing the peace and public disorder under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, adding, “After taking her into custody, we investigated and found evidence of her involvement in organising the protest.”= Charges against her also include attempted murder, intent to cause death or grievous harm during the incident, endangering life or personal safety, and criminal conspiracy.Story continues below this ad Chaudhary’s father, Arun Chaudhary, works for Ganashakti, the Communist Party of India mouthpiece. He asked how someone who was picked up on April 11 could be charged with violence that occurred two days later. “If the police are targeting certain ideologies, I myself hold some of them. What is wrong with having them? I’m proud that my daughter was raising her voice for workers’ rights. She is the Bhagat Singh of today. She’s still bold, and whenever we meet her in jail, she tells me not to lose hope. There is such heavy police deployment whenever I meet her, as if our children are terrorists,” he said. Along with Chaudhary, two others — Shristi Gupta (25) of Amethi and Rupesh Roi from Bihar — were arrested on the same charges. While Roi’s family was unavailable for comment, Gupta’s advocate, Rajnish Yadav, said that PhD students and social workers were simply “helping out” the workers. He, too, asked why Gupta was charged for the violence that occurred two days later. “When these students and social workers heard the plight of the labourers, they came out in their support through speeches and street plays. Just like duri
IPL 2026 RCB vs KKR Live: Once in the race of the Orange Cap, Virat Kohli has been dismissed for ducks in the last two games. (Photo: Creimas)IPL 2026 RCB vs KKR Live Cricket Score, Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Kolkata Knight Riders Playing 11 Today Match Updates: Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) will look to wrest back the top position in the Indian Premier League standings from the Gujarat Titans by defeating eighth-placed Kolkata Knight Riders today. RCB will be acutely aware that the race for the playoff spots will get intense in the coming days, so a win today will help them get some breathing space. The game will see RCB talisman Virat Kohli hoping to avoid a hat-trick of ducks in the season. He first fell for a two-ball duck in RCB’s match against Lucknow Super Giants and then was dismissed for a golden duck in Raipur against Mumbai Indians. Kohli was once leading the Orange Cap race, but now finds himself in 13th spot with 379 runs from 11 innings. Story continues below this ad (Scroll down for all the latest updates from the Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Kolkata Knight Riders IPL game) Live Updates Kohli looking to avoid hat-trick of ducks, Watson hoping he falls early again Kohli has scored 379 runs thus far this season in 11 innings at a strike rate of 163.36 and average of 42.11 with three-half centuries. (BCCI/Creimas Photo) Virat Kohli had been consistently among the runs for much of the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL) season until the last couple of matches, in which the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) veteran fell for ducks. He first fell for a two-ball duck in RCB’s match against Lucknow Super Giants and then for a golden duck in Raipur against Mumbai Indians. Now, RCB are set to face Kolkata Knight Riders in their second home match in Raipur and Kohli is hoping to avoid a hat-trick of ducks. Naturally, KKR’s assistant coach Shane Watson is hoping for the opposite. “Every team has plans against Virat Kohli because he’s one of the best players in the world. But the challenge is that he knows exactly how to counter those plans as well,” Watson told reporters on the eve of the match. Stay updated with the latest sports news across Cricket, Football, Chess, and more. Catch all the action with real-time live cricket score updates and in-depth coverage of ongoing matches.© IE Online Media Services Pvt Ltd Tags: Cricket Live Score IPL 2026 IPL Live Score KKR Live Cricket live cricket IPL Live cricket score Live Score Live Score Cricket RCB RCB vs KKR
Flyers and petitions emerge across Meta offices amid concerns over AI and monitoring (image: Reuters)Meta employees distributed flyers at multiple U.S. offices on Tuesday to protest the company’s recent installation of mouse-tracking software on their computers, according to photos of the pamphlets seen by Reuters. The flyers, which appeared in meeting rooms, on vending machines and atop toilet paper dispensers at the Facebook owner’s offices, encouraged staffers to sign an online petition against the move. “Don’t want to work at the Employee Data Extraction Factory?” they asked, according to the photos seen by Reuters. The pamphlet distribution comes about a week before Meta is set to lay off 10% of its workforce.It is the most visible sign to date of a nascent labor movement brewing inside the social media giant, as at least some staffers begin to channel their rage over the company’s plans to reshape its workforce around AI into labor-organizing efforts. For months, Meta employees have seethed on internal platforms and online forums over the company’s plans for deep layoffs this year — which it confirmed to staffers more than a month after Reuters first reported them — and the introduction of mouse-tracking software that many employees see as tantamount to helping design their own bot replacements. Meta defends tracking software Meta spokesperson Andy Stone, asked for comment on the matter, pointed Reuters to an earlier statement the company had issued on the mouse-tracking technology. “If we’re building agents to help people complete everyday tasks using computers, our models need real examples of how people actually use them — things like mouse movements, clicking buttons, and navigating dropdown menus,” it said. The pamphlets and the petition both cite the U.S. National Labor Relations Act, saying “workers are legally protected when they choose to organize for the improvement of working conditions.” In the UK, a group of Meta employees has started organizing a drive for unionization with United Tech and Allied Workers (UTAW), a branch of the Communication Workers Union. The employees set up a website to recruit members using the URL “Leanin.uk,” a reference to former Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg’s best-selling book encouraging women to seek equal footing in the workplace. A UTAW representative confirmed the UK campaign to Reuters.Story continues below this ad “Meta’s workers are paying the price for management’s reckless and expensive bets. While executives chase speculative AI strategies, staff are facing devastating job cuts, draconian surveillance, and the cruel reality of being forced to train the inefficient systems being positioned to replace them,” said Eleanor Payne, an organizer with UTAW. © IE Online Media Services Pvt Ltd Tags: META
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