Lawsuit Alleges Meta Used AI to Pick 8,000 Employees for Layoffs, Targeting Disabled Workers

A lawsuit filed by 26 former Meta employees claims the company used internal artificial intelligence systems to select 8,000 workers for layoffs, singling out those with disabilities or who had taken protected medical or family leave. The complaint alleges Meta bypassed human managers and instead relied on AI tools including a system called Metamate, keystroke monitoring, and performance algorithms to score and rank employees. Workers were also graded on their adoption of Meta’s AI tools, with categories like 'AI Native' and 'AI First.' The suit argues the process was discriminatory and lacked human judgment.