‘Your assignment is terminated’: Scale AI cuts 12 Red Team contractors after Meta deal

Scale AI, the data-labeling startup has reportedly cut a dozen contractors from its Red Team. According to a Business Insider report, ScaleAI’s Red Team tests artificial intelligence models for potential risks. The move comes months after Meta acquired nearly half of the company in a $14 billion deal and hired Scale’s CEO Alexandr Wang. The company, as per the report, has sent emails to the team, informing them their assignments were ending.

What the email says

The Business Insider report reveals that twelve contractors received emails last week. The message said: “Your assignment is being terminated as your performance has fallen below the standards of the role. This is not part of a larger restructuring”. The email also stated that affected workers would receive one month of severance but would not be paid for unused leave. Contractors with company-issued devices or badges would be sent shipping labels to return them.

A Scale spokesperson, Natalia Montalvo, said the 12 contractors were part of a “contingent workforce” and “a small fraction” of the Red Team. "Scale continues to maintain active red teaming projects with customers and remains committed to delivering and investing in red teaming services for leading AI companies," she stated.

Meta’s $14.3 billion investment ScaleAI

The layoffs follow Meta’s large $14.3 billion investment in Scale, which has reshaped the company. Since the deal, former workers said Red Team projects had slowed, with fewer assignments linked to

AI model safety

. One estimated that the recent cuts represented half the team.In July, Scale also laid off 14% of its full-time employees and about 500 contractors, citing “market shifts and overhiring.”

Meta’s partnership with Scale AI may be already facing strain

Months after the deal was announced, reports indicate that internal friction is causing significant tension within the company’s newly-formed Superintelligence Lab (MSL). This has led to a series of high-profile departures from the team.Citing sources close to the company, a report by TechCrunch said that a significant reason for the turmoil stems from the company’s partnership with Scale AI and the subsequent integration of new leadership, raising questions about the stability of CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s ambitious AI push.The report quotes two former and one current MSL employee who said that the AI unit has become increasingly chaotic since the arrival of Scale AI co-founder Alexandr Wang and a wave of new researchers.