Meta layoffs continued this week as the company cut more than 1,000 jobs in its Reality Labs division. The tech giant is eliminating roughly 10% of that unit as it shifts resources from metaverse projects to AI-powered wearables and phone features, according to Bloomberg.
The cuts follow the company’s elimination of about 3,600 employees, roughly 5% of its global workforce, through performance-based terminations in 2025. Since 2022, Meta has shed tens of thousands of roles.
The optimism vs. evidence problem
Meta’s latest layoffs highlight a growing challenge for CHROs across industries: being asked to execute layoffs based on investments and business plans that haven’t yet delivered returns.
At many firms, this is a conversation overshadowed by artificial intelligence. According to Gartner research, only 1% of layoffs in the first half of 2025 resulted from AI actually increasing employee productivity. Instead, companies are cutting headcount in anticipation of future AI gains, placing HR leaders in an impossible position.
“We’re seeing organizations reduce their workforce based on optimism about AI’s potential, not evidence of its performance,” says Kaelyn Lowmaster, director in the Gartner HR practice. “In some cases, companies will end up needing to rehire for roles they’ve cut.”
Read more: ‘Quiet firing’ and layoffs may take a toll on U.S. workers in 2026
The talent remix challenge
Meta’s situation illustrates the reality of workforce planning complexity. The company invested billions in its metaverse vision, built teams around that strategy and is now dismantling those investments to bet on AI hardware.
For CHROs, this creates two challenges. First, leaders must execute layoffs in a way that doesn’t damage the organization’s employment brand, particularly when the strategic rationale may shift again. Second, they need to lead what Gartner calls “talent remix” efforts. These ensure the workforce can actually support evolving business goals rather than simply cutting headcount and hoping AI fills the gaps.
“The most successful CHROs in 2026 will focus on sustainable workforce planning that accounts for AI’s actual impact, not its promised potential,” Lowmaster says.
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