Meta Platforms said Thursday it would eliminate roughly 8,000 positions — about 10% of its global workforce — as the social-media giant redirects capital toward artificial-intelligence infrastructure and the highly compensated AI specialists commanding some of the industry’s steepest salaries.
The company, which owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, framed the cuts as an efficiency drive that would free resources for new investment priorities, according to people familiar with the matter. Bloomberg News, which first reported the reductions, also said Meta plans to leave approximately 6,000 additional positions unfilled.
MSFT Also on Thursday, Microsoft said it would offer voluntary buyout packages to roughly 8,750 U.S. employees — about 7% of its domestic workforce — with offers to be extended in early May, according to two people familiar with the plan who were not authorized to speak publicly. The Redmond, Wash., software giant is seeking similar cost savings but through an approach its executives hope will avoid the abruptness of forced layoffs.
Amy Coleman, Microsoft’s chief people officer, announced the voluntary retirement program in an internal memo, a copy of which was reviewed by CNBC. The program aims to give eligible workers the choice to depart “on their own terms, with generous company support,” she wrote.
The twin announcements underscore a sweeping recalculation underway across the technology industry, where the enormous costs of building and running AI systems — chips, data centers, power and specialized talent — are forcing chief executives to find savings elsewhere in their organizations.
Meta has already cautioned investors to expect a sharp rise in spending: the company projects 2026 operating expenses in the range of $162 billion to $169 billion, driven by infrastructure outlays and surging compensation for AI researchers and engineers hired at pay levels that have unsettled rivals and recruiters alike.
Wedbush analyst Dan Ives viewed Meta’s reductions as a deliberate strategic move, arguing in a note to clients that AI tooling now allows large platforms to streamline operations without sacrificing output — requiring, in his words, “a leaner operating structure.”
Microsoft, which has spent billions building a sprawling global network of data centers to support its Azure cloud, its AI assistant Copilot and a broad suite of productivity software, faces similar pressures. The company’s bet on OpenAI and the subsequent integration of AI across nearly every product line has elevated capital-expenditure demands that executives have acknowledged will persist for years.
By: Montana Newsroom staff
