Meta’s artificial intelligence push turned into a crisis within the company

The artificial intelligence-focused transformation process started to cause serious discussions within Meta. In the internal notification sent by the company to tens of thousands of employees in the USA, it was stated that keystrokes, mouse movements, clicks and screen activities will begin to be tracked on corporate laptops. While it was stated that the collected data would be used to develop Meta’s artificial intelligence models, the first reactions from the employees were quite harsh. While hundreds of comments were shared on internal messaging platforms in a short time, many employees expressed their discomfort due to the scope of the application and its necessity.

Meta management describes the data collection system in question as a tool that will enable artificial intelligence models to better understand how people use computers. However, a significant portion of employees consider this as a direct surveillance practice. Not allowing the system to be logged out, especially on company devices, was at the center of criticism. An engineering manager asked, “How can one exit this application?” It was reported that Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth replied to the question: “There is no option for this on the company computer.” This approach made the already rising tension within the company more visible.

Meta’s recent practices that direct its employees to use artificial intelligence are not limited to this. It is stated that the company takes the use of artificial intelligence tools into account in performance evaluations, organizes mandatory “AI Transformation Weeks” events for employees and prepares internal dashboards that track employees’ daily artificial intelligence consumption. Measuring the amounts of “AI tokens” used in these systems produced different results in some teams. So much so that it is stated that some employees have started to develop new automation agents to manage other artificial intelligence tools. All of this shows that artificial intelligence processes within Meta are gradually turning into an increasingly intense and measurable structure.

Meta employees under pressure over layoff plan

The unrest within the company grew further when news of layoffs emerged. According to information revealed on April 17, Meta is preparing for a contraction of approximately 10 percent. The first phase of layoffs, which are stated to affect approximately 8 thousand employees, is expected to start on May 20. This development has created a new concern among employees who have been participating in artificial intelligence training for weeks and whose work habits have been monitored. Some employees began to think that the systems they helped develop could eliminate their positions.

Low morale draws attention in the posts shared on messaging platforms within the company. While some employees describe the process as “extremely demoralizing”, it is stated that websites have been created that countdown to the dismissal date. In addition, the spread of pessimistic humorous content and memes among employees also attracted attention. It was reported that a popular post within the company included only the phrase “It doesn’t matter.” This chart reveals that Meta’s aggressive AI transformation process has had significant effects on employee psychology.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg defended the data collection practice in company-wide meetings. Zuckerberg said that the purpose of this system is to “teach artificial intelligence how smart people complete tasks using computers.” In addition, he described the field of artificial intelligence as “probably one of the most competitive sectors in history.” Despite this, a significant portion of employees think that these statements are insufficient to calm the current atmosphere of uncertainty.

What happened at Meta is seen as an example of the broader transformation in the technology sector. Companies such as Microsoft, Coinbase and Block have also recently come to the fore with layoffs and internal tensions due to artificial intelligence-centered restructuring processes. Despite this, the remarkable aspect of Meta was that it implemented systems that track employee behavior, mandatory artificial intelligence training, performance pressure and downsizing plans in the same period.