Pineau began leading FAIR in 2023. The unit was established a decade earlier to work on difficult computer science problems typically tackled by academia. Yann LeCun, one of the godfathers of modern AI, initially oversaw the project, and instilled the research methodologies he learned from his time at the pioneering AT&T Bell Laboratories, according to several former employees at Meta. Small research teams could work on a variety of bleeding-edge projects that may or may not pan out.
The shift began when Meta laid off 21,000 employees, or nearly a quarter of its workforce, starting in late 2022. CEO Mark Zuckerberg kicked off 2023 by calling it the "year of efficiency." FAIR researchers, as part of the cost-cutting measures, were directed to work more closely with product teams, several former employees said.