Meta Cuts Jobs to Focus on AI & Gartner Says 100% of IT Work Will Involve It

Additional Resources

• Meta’s Superintelligence Lab Layoffs
• Gartner Survey Finds All IT Work Will Involve AI By 2030
• Express Employment AI Survey Findings

Transcript

Pete Newsome: 0:00

Today’s job market headlines include new data showing how many US companies have adopted AI and CIO predictions for AI replacing IT work. But first, there’s a new layoff coming from one of the Mag 7. Meta just announced that it’s cutting 600 jobs inside its superintelligence lab, which includes AI research product and infrastructure teams. The only group currently untouched is what they call the TBD lab, which is focused on building AI systems that could eventually outperform the human brain.

0:32

Okay, I wouldn’t want to lay those folks off either, whoever they are. Now, this news was delivered in an internal memo as reported by Axios, where Meta Chief AI officer Alexander Wang wrote, by reducing the size of our team, fewer conversations will be required to make a decision, and each person will be more load bearing and have more scope and impact. Wow, that is an unnecessarily elaborate way to say, hey everyone, we’re just going to do more with less. And if you happen to still be here, well, you’re going to have to pick up the slack of the 600 that we’re getting rid of. I mean, are you kidding me? Load bearing? Who says that?

1:12

Anyway, that’s what’s going on at Meta, and it’s just another continuation of what’s already been happening. They laid off 3,000 people in February, and then another 5% of the workforce was cut in January. So although Meta is spending billions recruiting top AI researchers, we’re sure you’ve seen that reported, it seems that these high-value research jobs are being created, but at the same time, hundreds of technical and support roles are just kind of quietly being eliminated along the way.

1:43

And so for me, the story is that yes, Meta is doing great things, making great progress, but this should also serve as a reminder that the AI revolution taking place isn’t going to lift all boats equally. And I can’t help but wonder when reading this story, in fact, it was the first thing that popped into my mind, is they’re replacing AI jobs, but conveniently didn’t say how many of those are being replaced by AI agents. What are the odds that it’s zero? They didn’t mention it, but instead they were focused on yes, people are going to make faster decisions and be load-bearing and all of that. But look, there’s real jobs being cut and real people losing them. So I would want to know how many are being replaced by AI along the way.

2:35

If I’m a meta employee, that’s pretty telling for the future. So this is an interesting cycle that we’re in, to say the least. But Meta is not alone in trying to figure all this out. Most companies say they’re all in on AI, but more than half admit they don’t know how to use it effectively. A new survey from Express Employment showed that 72% of US companies now use AI, and that’s up from 66% last year, but 55% of those using it say they lack the training and resources to help their employees use it productively.

3:07

Now, my first thought when reading this is what about the 28% who aren’t yet using AI at all? What are you doing? You’re so far behind, you’re not even in the game at this point. You really need to catch up. But yes, adoption in AI is easier said than done. It was a chief complaint that I heard at a big conference two weeks ago where there were lots of AI vendors. Companies are trying new tools and services, but just not getting the right level of acceptance and use internally. And it’s something that I’ve experienced at my own company with some of the early tools that we implemented. So using it and then using it well just seem to be very different things in the AI space right now.

3:50

And the workers who participate in this survey, they’re also being impacted by AI. No surprise there. 64% worry that AI will reduce their job opportunities, and almost half who took the survey fear that their own jobs could disappear entirely. That fear seems to run highest among Gen Z and lower income workers. And interestingly, more men than women say they fear being replaced. 52% of men versus 43% of women. I have no idea why, but I do find that a very interesting stat. So as this worry continues to grow, it seems that workers are at least taking advantage of AI along the way and helping with their next job opportunity. The survey showed that 82% are using it to write resumes and cover letters.

4:36

Okay, some of you are still writing cover letters out there. I didn’t miss that. And 69% are using it for headshots and more than half for AI interview prep. So good for all of you, but pleased with the AI interview prep. Leave it there. Don’t use it for AI answers during your interview. That won’t end well for anyone. And I think this is a good snapshot of just where we are right now. Shows people are nervous about AI, but also sort of excited about the future and where it’s heading, but making the most of it while they can. And I think that is a really important thing to do right now. Make sure that you’re one of the ones using it, become that subject matter expert in whatever it is you do, and don’t be caught off guard by the rapid pace of change. But speaking of rapid change, here’s another one for you. This next story really shows what the future of work looks like when AI becomes mandatory, not optional. Within five years, every IT job will involve artificial intelligence, whether you’re ready or not.

5:38

That’s straight from Gardner’s 2025 CIO survey, which found that by 2030, 0% of IT work will be done without AI. Instead, 75% will be done by humans augmented with AI, and 25% will be handled entirely by AI systems. Gardner says that to prepare, organizations need two types of readiness. What they call AI readiness, meaning technology, costs, and vendors are all in alignment, and human readiness, where employees are prepared to use AI effectively. We keep seeing that a lot. It’s not just about implementation or adoption, it’s about the proper training and education along the way. And of course, getting the buy-in from your entire team. Gardner also warned that if workers rely too heavily on AI, that they will have skills atrophy, meaning they’ll lose their ability to think critically or communicate effectively because AI will be doing all the thinking for them. I think that’s happening already.

6:38

We keep seeing signs of that. They also urge leaders to stop hiring for repetitive or low complexity roles and instead reposition employees into areas that drive revenue and innovation. That sounds nice, doesn’t it? Just move everyone into a revenue generating role. No big deal. Okay, enough sarcasm from me on that. But look, here’s what stood out the most in this survey that Gartner predicts AI’s overall impact on jobs will be neutral through 2026. Okay, I can buy off on that, even though I think that’s a little optimistic. But by 2036, it will have generated 500 million net new jobs worldwide in IT.

7:26

So 500 million net new human jobs created. That sounds wonderful. That also sounds like wishful thinking to me. I admittedly am extremely skeptical over these thoughts that AI is not going to result in job displacement. It’s just going to enhance jobs, or in this case, it’s going to create lots of jobs. And I want to be wrong, no question about it. I guess we’ll have to check back in 2036 to find out. But I’d much rather be wrong than caught off guard. And I wish that for everyone else too. Time will tell. And look, one thing we know for sure from these stories today is that AI is transforming the workplace.

8:11

The train has absolutely left the station. It’s picking up speed. And just make sure you’re on it. So before we go today, here’s your fun fact. The gig economy got its name from musicians. Musicians play gigs, freelancers work gigs, it all ties in together. And I that is compared to, I guess, well, working permanently somewhere, of course, right? Although there’s some musicians who do that out in Vegas, right? Or those called residencies, I think. Anyway, so the gig economy, there you go. Now you know where it came from. Thank you for listening today. Please like, share, and subscribe. I would certainly appreciate it that a lot. And thanks for listening. Talk to you tomorrow.