Is the ‘fractional’ economy the only safe harbour after a Big Tech layoff?
Tech titans’ whims of fancy are killing jobs and careers. If you’re made redundant, should you retrain, change industries or do something else?
OPINION
The rules of redundancy are changing. Recessions, poor personal performance, take-overs and age bias were once the hallmarks of why someone was laid off. Today, it’s more likely that a tech titan has burned billions of dollars in a venture or division that hasn’t been economically viable. Or they just changed direction.
This is the case for Meta; if rumours of mass layoffs materialise this week, it will impact approximately 10% of its 15,000-person Reality Labs division. The cuts, according to reports, mark a sobering moment for Mark Zuckerberg’s once-unshakeable “Metaverse” vision.
The Reality Labs division, responsible for virtual reality (VR) headsets and the Horizon Worlds social platform, has, according to reports burned through more than $60 billion since 2021. Wall Street and institutional investors have long expressed jitters over these losses, especially as consumer interest in fully immersive VR has remained niche.
| Year | Operating Loss for Reality Labs |
|---|---|
| 2025 (Q1 only) | $4.2 billion |
| 2024 | $17.7 billion |
| 2023 | $16.1 billion |
| 2022 | $13.7 billion |
| 2021 | $10.2 billion |
Source: Company filings/NASDAQ
According to analysts and internal memos, Meta’s Zuckerberg has changed his mind and will now focus on “superintelligence” (AI) and wearable tech that feels more immediate to the average consumer.
While VR teams are facing the brunt of the layoffs, the “wearables” unit—specifically the team behind Meta’s Ray-Ban smart glasses—has reportedly been spared. This signals a move away from the “all-in” digital universe toward augmented reality (AR) that enhances the physical world.
The “layoff entrepreneur” and the freelance surge
For the roughly 1,500 employees facing redundancy, the path forward often leads to the freelance and “fractional” economy. Experts note that tech and large employer layoffs by companies such as BlackRock, Microsoft, Amazon, Starbucks, Booz Allen Hamilton, and more have become a primary gateway into independent work. In the U.S. alone, freelancers are projected to make up over 50% of the workforce by 2027.
Many laid-off workers are choosing “fractional” roles—where they provide high-level expertise to multiple companies—rather than returning to a single employer. This “de-risks” their income; if one client cuts their budget, the freelancer doesn’t lose 100% of their livelihood.
Layoffs are also hitting the financial services sector. Today, it has been reported that asset manager BlackRock will cut hundreds of jobs as part of a regular round of layoffs to improve efficiency, a spokesperson for the company told Reuters.
The sales mindset: why all freelancers need one
The transition from a corporate role at a giant such as Meta to a successful freelance career requires a radical shift in mindset. Talent is no longer enough; survival in the freelance world depends on being sales-minded.
In a LinkedIn comment from a post started by Ives Tay, a Senior Workforce Skills Policy Advisor, on why retraining after being made redundant “doesn’t always save you,” tech workforce analyst and “data detective” Hwei-Yi Lee, said:
Sounds like no matter whether you work for your own or someone else’s company, you’re bearing business risk. Everybody has to be an entrepreneur.
To maintain their livelihoods, freelancers must learn to:
- Sell outcomes, not hours. For example, instead of saying “I build VR assets,” a successful freelancer could pitch: “I create immersive training modules that reduce employee onboarding time by 30%.”
- Act as a consultant, not a contractor. Clients pay a premium for those who help them solve business problems and drive sales, rather than those who simply follow a brief.
- Become a client problem solver. Many creatives cringe at the word “sales.” However, the most successful freelancers view selling as helping a client find a solution they are currently struggling with.
Before you reskill…
For those made redundant and thinking they may need to immediately re-skill, consider instead taking your experience to the mid-market or to another industry. You can explain, based on experience, where larger competitors or suppliers have gone wrong and how to build better products.
As Meta and other large corporations streamline their workforce to chase the AI dream, it inadvertently fuels a more resilient, sales-focused class of independent workers. What the world needs now are new hires and freelancers who are increasingly responsible for the next wave of tech innovation outside the walls of Silicon Valley.
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