Mark Zuckerbergs secret project aimed to replace 60% of staff with AI | Latest Tech News
Mark Zuckerberg was prepared to pull the plug — then a revolt stopped him in his tracks.
New particulars have surfaced of those plans involving tech giant Meta Platforms, which owns Facebook and Instagram, revealing the formidable purpose to use artificial intelligence to take over the position of many staffers.
Zuckerberg and top executives hatched a plan, codenamed Project OT (Organization Transformation), that envisioned AI reshaping the company’s workforce radically.
A view of the Meta (Facebook) headquarters on Friday, May 15, 2026, in Menlo Park, California. Anadolu via Getty Images
Under that plan, small, “talent-dense” teams of human staffers would oversee digital staff, according to inner paperwork seen by GWN. Teams that consisted of 10-20 people can be dramatically lowered to 3-5 people armed with AI instruments.
To execute the plan, executives had deliberate slashing as a lot as 60% of many groups on the workforce that might end result in big layoffs. A first purge would occur in May and a second in November, planning paperwork revealed.
In addition, open job positions can be closed and poor performers can be focused. Meta launched a human sources device to establish “irreplacable talent,” or extraordinarily gifted people who might do the work of an complete crew with AI.
But that plan didn’t go as anticipated. A layoff occurred in May but the November one was called off.
Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg arrives exterior court to take the stand at trial in Los Angeles, California, on Wednesday, February 18, 2026. REUTERS
Employees reportedly revolted after news got here out about impending layoffs.
One lawsuit filed by more than two dozen staff accused the company of utilizing an inner AI platform to choose targets, disproportionately focusing on those with disabilities.
Meta pursued its Project OT. Olga – stock.adobe.com
News that Meta was requiring monitoring software program on worker devices to educate AI brokers additional infuriated staff who feared they had been being changed. Many staff left messages on inner platforms expressing anger and some mocking executives.
Meta’s inner measure of worker sentiment dropped from 74% favorable to 55% favorable, according to a company survey.
There had been also technical considerations that Project OT could not go as envisioned. Technical and security incidents, such as service disruptions and potential data leaks, surged due to overreliance on unchecked AI brokers, GWN reported.
Questions about the AI’s productiveness also surfaced, according to inner posts.
Facebook company headquarters is seen in Menlo Park, California, on Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2022. Facebook proprietor Meta announced it can lay off more than 11,000 of its staff. AFP via Getty Images
All that led Zuckerberg to change course and his tone. He made an look at a company city corridor in July and made some concessions. AI agent technology, the CEO said, had not “accelerated” as rapidly as he had anticipated.
The company is at the moment on a blitz to emphasize Meta as people-centric.
“We are the only major company focusing on empowering people and putting the power of this new technology in billions of people’s hands across all our products – rather than primarily focusing on automating work,” he said in an inner post.
Meta confirmed Project OT existed in a assertion to GWN but claimed it never supposed to layoff 60% of its workforce.
“As part of our company restructuring earlier this year, we asked some teams to conduct a scenario planning exercise looking at the potential impact of redeployments, open role closures and cuts,” Meta said.
“This ultimately resulted in moving thousands of employees to do priority work on several newly-established teams, as has been publicly reported. Ultimately, we didn’t move forward with every scenario from the exercise – and it was never assumed we would.”
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