Meta's morale sinks after layoffs as hackathon plan backfires

Meta’s morale is sagging after last month’s layoffs of about 8,000 employees (roughly 10% of the workforce), with remaining staff taking on heavier workloads to train AI models. An internal memo from Mark Zuckerberg promised a company-wide AI hackathon to lift spirits, but workers pushed back, citing burnout and ongoing desk-sharing under a hot-desks scheme. Zuckerberg said there would be no further layoffs this year, underscoring the disconnect between leadership optimism and employee reality as Meta competes to advance AI.