AI + ML

Staff protest overhaul and mouse tracking at ‘Employee Data Extraction Factory’

Meta’s massive role reshuffle begins today, with thousands of staff being transferred to AI-focused teams and their managers reportedly laid off.

The tech giant is reassigning 7,000 workers to AI projects, eliminating around 10 percent of its current workforce, and closing 6,000 open positions, according to Reuters, which saw copies of the internal memos.

The workforce changes, the latest in a series of moves that started 2022, will affect roughly 20 percent of Meta’s approximately 78,000 employees.

Janelle Gale, Meta’s chief people officer, penned the memos to affected staff. Some have already begun their new AI-related duties, while the rest will be told of their fates today, she reportedly said.

“As org leaders worked on the changes, many of them incorporated AI-native design principles ⁠into their new org structures,” Gale’s memo read. 

“We’re now at the stage where many orgs can operate with a flatter structure with smaller teams of pods/cohorts that can move faster and with more ownership.”

This flatter structure will involve, in part, managers being either laid off or moved into roles where they are producing work instead of overseeing teams.

Previous memos sent to staff in April stated that top engineers – those who represented the company’s “strong software engineering talent” – were being “selected” for brand-new divisions within the business.

Among these were the Applied AI Engineering and Agent Transformation Accelerator units, as well as Central Analytics.

Once famed for letting its staff pick and choose their projects, Meta said those selected for this new AI mission had no say in the matter.

Responding to an employee’s question, Maher Saba, VP of AAI Engineering, wrote: “AAI is one of the company’s highest priorities and we’re resourcing it by moving our strongest talent to address it. Therefore, the transfers aren’t optional.”

Both AI units were established for engineers to develop AI agents capable of automating and taking over duties previously undertaken by human employees.

Those transferred to Central Analytics will work on ways of assessing productivity and analytics for agent development.

According to Gale’s memo, another new unit called Enterprise Solutions will soon be established, but Meta has not yet revealed details. The Register asked Meta for a statement, but it did not immediately respond.

The Great Flattening

Gale’s language regarding “flatter structures” echoes chief Mark Zuckerberg’s wording from Meta’s January earnings report, promising to flatten teams over the coming year.

“We’re elevating individual contributors, and flattening teams,” Zuck wrote in a post-earnings note on January 28. “We’re starting to see projects that used to require big teams now be accomplished by a single very talented person. 

“I want to make sure as many of these very talented people as possible choose Meta as the place they can make the greatest impact – to deliver personalized products to billions of people around the world. And if we do this, then I think we’ll get a lot more done and it’s going to be a lot more fun.”

Reports surfaced around the same time about a major round of job cuts at the company, equivalent to 20 percent of its workforce, or around 15,000 roles, but it was unclear when or if this would materialize.

Meta’s latest round of layoffs follows a smaller-scale round in March, affecting 700 roles across Reality Labs, the social media division, and recruitment.

The changes come against a backdrop of Meta investing heavily in AI, with the company saying it plans to spend between $162 billion and $167 billion this year, up from $118 billion in 2025.

The company has reportedly also tried tempting top AI talent to join its ranks with nine-figure pay packets, and ex-OpenAI players with $100 million sign-on bonuses.

The revolt

Meta slashing roles to embrace AI replacements has led to protests across its Menlo Park HQ and internal Workspace comms platform, Reuters reports.

First announced in April, Meta said it would be tracking mouse clicks and keystrokes to train AI rather than assess staff productivity.

A company spokesperson told the BBC: “If we’re building agents to help people complete everyday tasks using computers, our models need real examples of how people actually use them.”

They said the data is not used for any other purpose, and there are safeguards in place to protect sensitive content.

But Meta staff have expressed their disdain for the changes in various ways, including by setting up an online petition – which now has over 1,000 signatures – and plastering flyers all over US offices referring to the company as an “Employee Data Extraction Factory.” ®

• Obscura VPN is now available for Android users via Google Play, Obtainium
• Users can also claim a 25% discount for a limited time
• Dedicated apps for Windows and Linux are currently in development

If you’ve been searching for the best VPN to protect your mobile device, a fresh and highly secure contender has just entered the chat. Obscura VPN has officially landed on Android, bringing its unique flavor of privacy to the world’s most popular mobile operating system.

Previously limited to iOS and macOS, the provider is now available to download on Google Play and the open-source app manager Obtainium. It marks a major milestone for the privacy-focused company, which aims to shield the vast amounts of personal data and location history stored on our smartphones.

Huy Vector turned a childhood obsession with the Fallout games into a working smartwatch that looks and feels like it came straight from the vaults. The finished piece sits comfortably on the wrist with a simple leather strap, yet every detail echoes the classic Pip-Boy design from the series. Green text scrolls across a small screen against a black background, vital signs appear in the familiar retro font, and the whole thing runs on everyday parts anyone can order online.

Vector used the Seeed Studio XIAO ESP32-S3 board for the Vector project, which crams a microcontroller, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi into an extremely compact device that fits beneath the display. He chose a 1.54-inch LCD for the panel, which replicates the green-on-black image that gamers fondly remember. A MAX30102 sensor is nestled into the back to monitor heart rate and blood oxygen levels in real time, which is ideal for keeping an eye on things while playing. The entire system is powered by a small lithium-ion battery that is discreetly hidden. It’s all held together with copper tubing and some clever brass hardware that also serves as controls.

Vector’s assembly requires some careful soldering and a few simple tools. Vector constructed the frame with 0.8 millimeter copper wire, a handful of M2 brass screws, and some short parts of brass tube. Once he had tidied up the wiring and ensured its stability, the screws served as touch points. To prevent accidental triggering, the bases of those screws are encased with heat-shrink tubing. There’s a little switch that allows you to turn on and off the unit without having to reach for your phone. If you’re curious about the parts list, Vector lays it down on his website and links directly to the vendors, even the solder and flux, so if you have basic abilities, you should be fine.

Vector programmed his own code to extract data from the heart rate sensor and send it to the Pip-Boy interface, using the Adafruit GFX library for visuals and the SparkFun MAX3010x library for readings. The program can be downloaded onto the ESP32 board via a typical USB connection. Once it’s running, you’ll see live heart rate and SpO2 data in a clean, game-accurate interface. Toggling the brass points navigates between the various panels, and the wireless functionality is still in the works, waiting for future upgrades that may include notifications or other data.

He also made the complete list of parts, wiring schematic, and code file available on his website for free. There aren’t any kits for sale currently, but if you’re the sort to tackle a project like this, you can get the individual parts and make one yourself. Just be aware that it may be one-of-a-kind, but that’s all part of the excitement.
[Source]

from the good-deals-on-cool-stuff dept

Transform your future in cybersecurity with 7 courses on next‑level packet control, secure architecture, and cloud‑ready defenses inside the 2026 Complete Firewall Admin Bundle. Courses cover IT fundamentals, topics to help you prepare for the CompTIA Server+ and CCNA exams, and more. It’s on sale for $25.

Note: The Techdirt Deals Store is powered and curated by StackSocial. A portion of all sales from Techdirt Deals helps support Techdirt. The products featured do not reflect endorsements by our editorial team.

Filed Under: daily deal