Reports circulating on X suggest that Meta may have dismissed the AI safety team acquired from Virtue AI in June 2026. These claims remain unconfirmed, and there is currently no substantial evidence to verify the layoffs.
Meta initially hired key personnel from Virtue AI, including co-founders Bo Li, Dawn Song, and Sanmi Koyejo, on June 25, 2026. The team was integrated into Meta Superintelligence Labs to focus on automated red teaming, runtime guardrails, and AI governance.
The startup Virtue AI, founded in 2024, previously raised $30 million and served clients such as Uber and Glean. Following the initial acqui-hire by Meta, the remaining entity of Virtue AI was acquired by Fortinet on August 17, 2026.
These reports emerge following a broader restructuring at Meta in May 2026, when the company laid off approximately 8,000 employees, representing 10% of its workforce, as part of an initiative known as Project OT.
