Meta's AI division, Applied AI (AAI), has begun a reorganization process in which individual technical specialists are being offered leadership positions.
Meta's AI division, Applied AI (AAI), has begun a reorganization process in which individual technical specialists are being offered leadership positions.
This was reported to Business Insider by four sources familiar with the situation. The company itself declined to comment.
The Applied AI unit was created this year specifically to train new AI models. It brought together about 7,000 of the company’s employees , many of whom had previously been demoted from management positions to rank-and-file developers.
The move marks a partial reversal for Meta. Over the past year, the company has been aggressively reducing middle management and promoting the concept of flat, compact teams. Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg has repeatedly praised the “lean startup” format, especially as artificial intelligence takes over more and more operational tasks.
To improve efficiency and compensate for the huge investment in AI, Meta has cut about 10% of its staff. Analysis of the layoff reports shows that the cuts have hit managers hardest.
This isn't the first time Meta has adjusted internal decisions regarding its new AI direction. The company previously allowed some employees to leave the AAI division after complaints that they were forcibly "drafted" into the new structure.
