Meta Platforms Is Cutting 600 AI Jobs. Should You Buy, Sell, or Hold META Stock Here?

Core Insights - Meta Platforms is laying off approximately 600 positions in its Superintelligence division to streamline AI operations that have become overly bureaucratic [1][3] - The layoffs affect various teams, including AI infrastructure, the Fundamental AI Research lab, and product-related roles, while the TBD Labs unit remains unaffected [1][3] - CEO Mark Zuckerberg's frustration with AI progress, particularly after the lukewarm reception of the Llama 4 models, has prompted these cuts [3][4] Company Strategy - Chief AI Officer Alexandr Wang stated that reducing team size will facilitate faster decision-making and enhance the impact of remaining employees [3][4] - Meta has invited affected employees to apply for other internal positions and provided severance packages of 16 weeks plus two weeks for each year of service [4] - Following the layoffs, Meta's Superintelligence Labs now employs just under 3,000 people [5] Financial Outlook - Meta continues to invest aggressively in AI, including a $27 billion partnership for a Louisiana data center, and has raised its 2025 expense guidance to between $114 billion and $118 billion [5][6] - CFO Susan Li emphasized the company's goal to balance near-term profitability with long-term investments across various initiatives, including core advertising and frontier AI models [6][7] - The company has been experiencing operating profit growth while funding ambitious projects, with improvements in core ranking and recommendations driving engagement and revenue growth [7]