Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta bet that AI would shrink its management ranks. Now it’s quietly rebuilding them

After spending much of the past year eliminating management layers to build a leaner, AI-driven organization, Meta is now quietly bringing some managers back.

The technology giant has begun asking individual contributors in its Applied AI (AAI) division whether they would like to transition back into manager roles as part of a recent internal reorganization, according to Business Insider , which cited four people familiar with the matter.

The move is reportedly voluntary and represents a notable shift for a company that has aggressively championed flatter organizational structures.

The decision highlights the challenge companies face in balancing efficiency, rapid AI development, and workforce coordination.

AAI is a newly created engineering division launched in 2026 to help bridge the gap between Meta’s AI research and product execution.

The group trains AI models and accelerates their deployment across the company’s products.

Earlier this year, Meta reassigned roughly 7,000 employees to the unit, including some who had previously held manager positions before moving into individual contributor roles.

Meta did not immediately respond to Fortune ‘s request for comment.

Meta’s push to flatten its workforce The move marks a partial reversal of a broader restructuring effort that has defined much of Meta’s strategy over the past year.

As CEO Mark Zuckerberg accelerated the company’s transition toward what executives have described as a more AI-native future, Meta reduced management layers and emphasized smaller, faster-moving teams.

The company argued that flatter structures would improve decision-making, reduce bureaucracy, and help offset the rising cost of its massive AI investments.

The current retooling is not the first time Meta has rewired its management ranks in the name of speed.

In 2023, during what Zuckerberg branded his “year of efficiency,” the company asked many managers and directors to move into individual contributor jobs or leave in a process it internally called “flattening” — the same maneuver it is now selectively undoing.

That approach hardened in 2026.