Meta Is Tracking Employee Computers to Train AI and Workers Aren't Happy

Employees of Meta aren't happy after learning that the company will be tracking their computers to train Artificial Intelligence, or AI, according to Reuters. Not only that, Meta reportedly plans to lay off thousands of workers beginning in May 2026.

Meta is the platform that powers Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and WhatsApp, and the company is installing Model Capability Initiative software, a program that monitors employees' clicks, keystrokes, and mouse movements. The software can also take screenshots of employees' computer screens. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg reportedly sent an internal memo to workers about the software, and they are not pleased.

The memo reportedly noted that employees could help Meta's AI models do better work, simply by working themselves. "This is where all Meta employees can help our models get better simply by doing their daily work," read the memo, adding that the software would gather data "for all the types of interactions we have as we go about our work."

According to CNET, the internal memo shocked many employees, and when one employee responded to the memo by asking how to opt out, the response was also a shock.

"This makes me super uncomfortable," wrote one employee. "How do we opt out?"

"There is no way to opt out on your work laptop," replied Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth.

A spokesperson told the outlet that the new software would use "real examples" of how people work with their computers to train AI

"To help, we're launching an internal tool that will capture these kinds of inputs on certain applications to help us train our models," they said. "There are safeguards in place to protect sensitive content, and the data is not used for any other purpose."

Meta invested at least $135 billion in AI this year alone, yet they plan to lay off 8,000 employees in May after cutting 25,000 jobs since 2022. The fact that the company is now planning on using employees to train AI and possibly lay them off is not a good look, and folks are not happy. After the news was shared on X, users responded, and Meta did not fare well in the comments. Several noted the invasion of privacy, as well as being replaced by AI.

"Your computer use will train your very own AI replacement," noted one X user. "Love the surveillance-as-training-data framing. Not convinced it trains better models. But Meta's probably crushing what they really wanted."

"That's not right. It's an intrusion into personal privacy," added one.

Another user replied that greed was the culprit. "Cost of greed. The owners are unbelievably rich, but still making people redundant to increase their profits further. Awful."

Director of the Privacy and Data Project at the Center for Democracy & Technology, Eric Null, also said Meta was "invasive" with their workplace surveillance plan while also being dangerous.

"That invasiveness underscores the need for clear privacy protections and AI guardrails," he said. "This type of surveillance can cause real harm to people with disabilities, and workers in general chafe at this kind of tracking. Using this data for AI training in particular has the potential to replicate structural biases."