Mark Zuckerberg's bold plan to replace Meta staff with AI imploded

In January, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his key executives gathered for an annual leadership retreat in Hawaii. They devised a groundbreaking plan, code-named Project OT, to modernize Meta in the AI era. The concept involved replacing thousands of human employees with AI, with human oversight. According to internal documents, the plan aimed to cut team sizes by up to 60%, leading to potential layoffs as large as the 25% reductions seen three years prior.

The restructuring was to be done in two waves, starting in May and followed by another in November. However, just hours before the first wave on May 19, Zuckerberg halted the plan. Employees were outraged, believing the AI initiatives were meant to replace them. The company was also facing skepticism from investors over the lack of productivity gains from their AI investments.

This report, based on numerous internal documents and conversations with over 20 Meta insiders, explains how the company attempted to pioneer an AI-driven workplace transformation, but ultimately failed. Zuckerberg's company affirmed the existence of Project OT, describing it as a year-long initiative focused on cost cutting, restructuring, and reallocating staff to new areas like AI data production.

However, they declined to disclose which teams were affected and stated that the second wave was never finalised.