Meta Platforms announced it is laying off approximately 600 employees from its artificial intelligence division as part of a strategic effort to streamline operations and accelerate progress in the competitive AI landscape. The job cuts will primarily affect the Facebook Artificial Intelligence Research (FAIR) unit and teams working on AI infrastructure and related products. However, the recently established and highly-paid TBD Lab will not be impacted by these layoffs. The move is intended to make the AI division more agile by reducing organizational layers, which is expected to speed up decision-making. In an internal memo, Meta's Chief AI Officer, Alexandr Wang, stated that a smaller team would require "fewer conversations will be required to make a decision." This restructuring follows a period of aggressive hiring and significant investment in AI, including a multi-billion dollar investment in Scale AI. Following the announcement, Meta's shares reportedly saw a slight dip of about 1% in afternoon trading. The company is providing affected employees with at least 16 weeks of severance pay and is encouraging them to apply for other open positions within Meta.