Tech giant Meta Platforms, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, reportedly devised a secret initiative codenamed Project OT (Organization Transformation) with the ambitious aim of significantly reshaping its workforce using artificial intelligence. Internal documents obtained by Reuters suggest the plan envisioned reducing teams dramatically, with small groups of human employees overseeing AI-driven virtual workers.
Under this initiative, teams of 10-20 people were slated to be reduced to 3-5 individuals equipped with AI tools. Planning documents indicated a potential reduction of up to 60% in many departments, with phased layoffs anticipated in May and November. The company also reportedly planned to close open job positions and target underperforming employees. A human resources tool was developed to identify "irreplaceable talent" capable of performing the work of an entire team with AI assistance.
However, the plan did not unfold as anticipated. While a layoff occurred in May, the planned November reduction was ultimately canceled. Employee dissent reportedly arose after news of the impending layoffs surfaced. A lawsuit filed by more than two dozen employees accused Meta of using an internal AI platform for selection, alleging disproportionate targeting of individuals with disabilities.
Further inflaming employee sentiment, Meta's requirement for tracking software on employee devices to train AI agents raised fears of job displacement. This led to widespread anger and mockery of executives on internal platforms, causing Meta's internal employee sentiment metric to drop from 74% favorable to 55% favorable, according to a company survey.
Technical and operational concerns also emerged. Reports indicated a surge in incidents such as service disruptions and potential data leaks due to an overreliance on unchecked AI agents. Questions about the actual productivity of the AI systems were also raised in internal discussions.
These challenges prompted a shift in strategy and tone from Meta's leadership. In a company town hall in July, CEO Mark Zuckerberg acknowledged that AI agent technology had not "accelerated" as rapidly as he had expected. Meta has since emphasized a more people-centric approach, with Zuckerberg stating in an internal post that the company's focus is 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."
Meta confirmed the existence of Project OT in a statement to Reuters but disputed the claim that it intended to lay off 60% of its workforce. The company stated that the initiative was a scenario planning exercise related to restructuring and that not all scenarios were intended for implementation. It added that the exercise ultimately led to the redeployment of thousands of employees to priority tasks on newly established teams.