Editorial independence is core to our work. Some links may earn us a commission, without influencing our opinions.Which 1.5 ton 5 star split AC should you buy in 2026? 5 models to consider for lower electricity billsThese ACs come with air filtration systems
Shelby Campbell Michigan campaign in focus as Democrat's ‘twerking’ video goes viral; ‘not sending their best’Shelby Campbell, Democrat, is running for election to represent Michigan's 13th Congressional district, and an alleged video of her 'twerking' has gone viral. Published on: May 17
Bulgarian pop star Dara has won the Eurovision Song Contest with her pneumatic dance anthem Bangaranga. The 27-year-old topped both the public and the jury vote in a nail-biting conclusion, soaring ahead of Israel in second and Romania in third to score a massive 516 points
‘Entire NTA panel under scanner’: CBI widens NEET leak probe after 2nd insider arrestNTA expert Manisha Mandhare was arrested in the NEET-UG leak case, a day after alleged kingpin PV Kulkarni was held. Updated on: May 17, 2026 8:03 AM IST By Anita Goswami | Reported by Neeraj Chauhan Share via
As India’s AI startup ecosystem grows increasingly competitive, recognition is becoming a key driver of visibility, credibility, and business growth. The ET Most Innovative AI Product Awards 2026 aims to spotlight startups building scalable, high-impact AI solutions across industries
‘Dead scared to take a loan’: Hyderabad techie says IT jobs no longer feel secure amid layoffsA Hyderabad-based software engineer claims he is “dead scared” to take a loan right now due to lack of job security. Updated on: May 17, 2026 6:44 AM IST By Sanya Jain Share via Copy link A
Tamil Nadu CM Vijay keeps home, police and women welfare portfolios in first TVK governmentTN Governor Rajendra Arlekar approved the allocation of portfolios to the nine ministers, along with Vijay, who were sworn in last week. Updated on: May 17
Meta employees took free snacks, chargers during layoffs: ‘Almost like doomsday’A former Meta employee has revealed that workers at the tech giant stuffed their bags with free goodies on the eve of the company’s first major layoff Updated on: May 17
Meta employees took free snacks
Meta employees took free snacks, chargers during layoffs: ‘Almost like doomsday’
Meta employees took free snacks, chargers during layoffs: ‘Almost like doomsday’
A former Meta employee has revealed that workers at the tech giant stuffed their bags with free goodies on the eve of the company’s first major layoff
Updated on: May 17, 2026 7:55 AM IST By Sanya Jain Share via Copy link A former Meta employee has revealed that workers at the tech giant stuffed their bags with free goodies on the eve of the company’s first major layoff, describing the atmosphere inside the company as “almost like doomsday”. Adel Wu, who said she witnessed multiple rounds of layoffs during her final year at Meta, shared a post on X recalling the tense environment that gripped employees before one particularly large round of job cuts. A former Meta employee spoke about anxiety at the company due to layoffs (REUTERS file photo) Her post comes shortly before Meta is all set to cut 8,000 jobs on May 20. Wu implied that little has changed since 2021 when it comes to the tense atmosphere preceding layoffs at Mark Zuckerberg's company.Meta’s first layoff
Meta cut 11,000 jobs in 2022 — the first in the company’s 18-year history. The 2022 layoffs were attributed to Meta sinking more money into its doomed Metaverse project. Several other rounds of layoffs followed the 2022 round, thanks to the AI boom and aggressive investment in automation. In her X post, Wu said that she witnessed several layoffs during her last year at Meta. “During my last year at Meta there were probably 4-5 layoffs, but this one on 5/20 is huuuge,” she wrote, referring to the May 20 date when Meta will announce who has been made redundant. Wu said that her friends at Meta are extremely anxious about their future with the company. “My friends still there are either just waiting hoping to get laid off or extremely anxious because the job is their lifeline,” she said. “I remember the very first big layoff the night before was almost like doomsday, people were stuffing their bags with free snacks and drinks and chargers,” Wu recalled. She ended her post by calling it a “very weird time to be in big tech”.‘A lot of anxiety’
“I’ve been here for every round of layoffs, I don’t think this one is worse than the first two years but there is definitely a lot of anxiety and resentment in the company. I miss 2021 so much lol,” claimed one person in the comments section. “Haha I remember waking up at like 3am PT to sit and stare at my inbox for the email of doom. Trauma bonding. Makes for a crazy story to tell in the future,” another recalled. Many agreed that morale is at an all time low in the IT industry. (Also read: ‘Dead scared to take a loan’: Hyderabad techie says IT jobs no longer feel secure amid layoffs) “The first lay off was wild, someone on my team was literally laid off mid-business trip, but also knowing that there were like 3 -5 more rounds of layoffs just killed off any morale I had, and I was definitely in the camp of hoping to get laid off,” a user said. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Sanya Jain Sanya Jain is an Assistant Editor with Hindustan Times Digital. She has nearly a decade of experience in covering offbeat stories that speak to the everyday experience - from viral videos to human interest copies that spark conversation. Her interests stretch across business, pop culture, social media trends, entertainment and global affairs. Before joining Hindustan Times, Sanya spent two years with Moneycontrol and five years with NDTV. She holds an undergraduate degree in English literature from St Stephen’s College, Delhi, and a master’s in journalism from the Xavier Institute of Communications, Mumbai. Sanya has a sharp eye for spotting emerging trends and looking for newsworthy angles to elevate viral posts into meaningful narratives. She was the first one, for example, to cover Narayana Murthy’s remark on 70-hour work weeks that sparked a national conversation. She is equally at ease writing about business leaders as about the common man, about issues of national importance and memes that amuse social media. Sanya enjoys speaking with content creators, newsmakers and entrepreneurs to transform everyday moments into engaging, slice-of-life stories that resonate with readers. When she is not working, Sanya can be found curled up with a good book. Born and raised in Lucknow, she has spent the last several years in Delhi. She is deeply interested in animal welfare and now spends a lot of her time running after her destructive orange cat.Read More Layoffs Home/Trending/Us/Meta Employees Took Free Snacks, Chargers During Layoffs: ‘Almost Like Doomsday’ See Less Home/Trending/Us/Meta Employees Took Free Snacks, Chargers During Layoffs: ‘Almost Like Doomsday’A former Meta employee has revealed that workers at the tech giant stuffed their bags with free goodies on the eve of the company’s first major layoff, describing the atmosphere inside the company as “almost like doomsday”. Adel Wu, who said she witnessed multiple rounds of layoffs during her final year at Meta, shared a post on X recalling the tense environment that gripped employees before one particularly large round of job cuts.
Her post comes shortly before Meta is all set to cut 8,000 jobs on May 20. Wu implied that little has changed since 2021 when it comes to the tense atmosphere preceding layoffs at Mark Zuckerberg's company.
In her X post, Wu said that she witnessed several layoffs during her last year at Meta. “During my last year at Meta there were probably 4-5 layoffs, but this one on 5/20 is huuuge,” she wrote, referring to the May 20 date when Meta will announce who has been made redundant.
Wu said that her friends at Meta are extremely anxious about their future with the company. “My friends still there are either just waiting hoping to get laid off or extremely anxious because the job is their lifeline,” she said.
“I remember the very first big layoff the night before was almost like doomsday, people were stuffing their bags with free snacks and drinks and chargers,” Wu recalled.
She ended her post by calling it a “very weird time to be in big tech”.
“Haha I remember waking up at like 3am PT to sit and stare at my inbox for the email of doom. Trauma bonding. Makes for a crazy story to tell in the future,” another recalled.
Many agreed that morale is at an all time low in the IT industry. (Also read: ‘Dead scared to take a loan’: Hyderabad techie says IT jobs no longer feel secure amid layoffs)
“The first lay off was wild, someone on my team was literally laid off mid-business trip, but also knowing that there were like 3 -5 more rounds of layoffs just killed off any morale I had, and I was definitely in the camp of hoping to get laid off,” a user said.
Source: HindustanTimes
Related Posts: From Citrus To Fried Snacks 5 Frozen Snacks That’ll Make Your Christmas Party The Talk Of The Season Dumplings, Skewers And Snacks Reaching for snacks often AIIMS-trained gastroenterologist shares 8 better snacks instead of potato chips Why Clean, Mindful Snacks Are Stealing The Spotlight This Festive Season Why Ragi Snacks Are Quietly Becoming Every Parent’s Favourite Fix For Kids Elephant Raids Thai Convenience Store For Snacks Check 10 low-calorie snacks perfect for garba nights Back To Work, Back to Snacks
Pati Patni Aur Woh Do box office collection day 2: Ayushmann Khurrana film shows spike; collects over ₹9 crorePati Patni Aur Woh Do box office collection day 2: How Mudassar Aziz's Ayushmann Khurrana, Wamiqa Gabbi, Sara Ali Khan and Rakul Preet Singh-starrer is faring. May 17, 2026
3 minutes ago
The Union government on Saturday imposed restrictions on silver imports, moving several categories of the metal from the “free” to the “restricted” category. This means that the imports will now require authorisation from the Directorate General of Foreign Trade under the Ministry of
3 minutes ago
Gujarat Titans skipper Shubman Gill pointed to dropped catches as the reason for their 29-run defeat against Kolkata Knight Riders. The team's fielding faltered, allowing KKR to post a massive 247. Finn Allen capitalized with a blistering 93
3 minutes ago
The star's directorial debut Propeller One-Way Night Coach has premiered at Cannes - and one critic dubbed it a 'disaster'. It's the latest example of an A-lister heading behind the camera with baffling results. At the Cannes Film Festival on Saturday night, the festival's dapper organiser
Just now
Trinamool Congress’ Rajganj candidate Swapna Barman on Friday alleged that unknown miscreants set fire to her house in Jalpaiguri. The fire, which broke out at about 8 pm, was doused and no one was inside the house during the incident, The Indian Express Bengali quoted the police as saying
1 days ago
After a heavy West Bengal poll defeat, Mamata Banerjee tells TMC candidates to rebuild the party, says members are free to leave. After the Trinamool Congress (TMC) suffered a massive defeat in the West Bengal assembly elections, party supremo Mamata Banerjee appealed to the candidates who fought
1 days ago
A video showing a man allegedly cutting part of a structural column from the balcony of a high-rise apartment has sparked shock and concern online. The clip, filmed from another building nearby, shows workers standing on the sixth floor of a tall residential tower while carrying out the risky task
1 days ago
What is Captagon and why is it called ‘Jihadi drug’? ExplainedCaptagon is the common street name historically associated with Fenethylline, a synthetic stimulant drug originally developed in the 1960s. Updated on: May 16, 2026 1:58 PM IST By Prawesh Lama | Edited by Shivam Pratap Singh Share
1 days ago
Chief Justice Surya Kant on Friday described some unemployed youngsters as “cockroaches”, saying that they go on to become social media or Right to Information Act activists and start attacking the “system”, PTI reported. The remarks were made when a bench of Kant and Justice Joymalya
1 days ago
Indian naval ship arrives in Sri Lanka for operational deploymentIndian naval ship arrives in Sri Lanka for operational deployment Published on: May 16, 2026 12:53 PM IST PTI Share via Copy link Colombo, Indian Naval Ship Sunayna has arrived at the port of Colombo for a three-day visit as part of
1 days ago
A dual-income techie has gone viral online after opening up about their fears of buying a Rs 1.7 crore flat at a time when layoffs and hiring slowdowns continue to haunt the IT sector. The discussion began after a software developer shared a detailed post on Reddit
1 days ago
JioHotstar has officially unveiled the OTT release date of Dhurandhar 2: The Revenge, confirming the arrival of its ‘Raw and Undekha’ version in India with a grand digital premiere on June 4 at 7 PM. The film, starring Ranveer Singh, will begin streaming on JioHotstar from June 5, 2026
1 days ago
Chennai, May 16 (PTI) Aryaveer Dewan will spearhead India’s challenge at the Asian Junior Individual Squash Championships to be held in Panzhihua, China later this month. Dewan, who clinched the U-17 boys’ title last year, will move up to the U-19 category this time and enter the tournament
1 days ago
HR calls out colleague, management in resignation email over employee treatmentAn HR professional’s instant resignation email slamming toxic management and a colleague has sparked a massive discussion online. Updated on: May 16, 2026 1:13 PM IST By Trisha Sengupta Share via Copy link A LinkedIn
1 days ago
If you thought kheer could only be made with milk and sugar, this viral desi twist is here to surprise you. A unique version of India’s beloved dessert—Sugarcane Juice Kheer—is making waves online, with food lovers calling it the perfect blend of tradition and innovation
1 days ago
'Bindaas aaram karo': Manager offers 2-day period leave to female employee, internet dividedA WhatsApp chat between a manager and a newly joined female employee about period leave has divided the internet. Updated on: May 16, 2026 1:41 PM IST By Bhavya Sukheja Share via Copy link A manager’s
1 days ago
How well do you know your Indian single malts? In 2024, they surpassed imported malt sales for the first time, while distillers picked up major international awards and expanded a category once dismissed as a tropical novelty. In March 2026, John Distilleries’ Master Distiller Michael D’Souza
1 days ago
Buenos Aires (Argentina), May 16 (AP) At 6 a.m., in the Mataderos neighbourhood of Buenos Aires, workers unload sides of beef from a truck outside a butcher shop as customers line up for wholesale purchases. Inside, 73-year-old owner Jorge García and his staff prepare meat orders before dawn
1 days ago
Is Iran hacking US fuel systems? Cyber breaches hit gas station tank monitors across states, says reportHackers reportedly compromised automatic tank gauge (ATG) systems that were connected to the internet without password protection. Updated on: May 16
1 days ago
Indian hockey has been rocked by yet another safeguarding controversy, with a member of the India U-18 men’s coaching staff removed from camp following allegations of sexual misconduct. According to multiple reports, support staff member Sudhir Golla was asked to leave the Indian setup in Bhopal
1 days ago
Step inside Rajeev Khandelwal’s stunning triplex Mumbai home with earthy interiors and cosy cornersHere’s a sneak peek into Rajeev Khandelwal’s Mumbai triplex featuring chic interiors, warm lighting and stylish décor. Published on: May 16, 2026 1:56 PM IST By Anukriti Srivastava Share via
1 days ago
Climate Change crisis: IMD to change parameters to declare heatwavesClimate Change crisis: IMD to change parameters to declare heatwaves Updated on: May 16, 2026 1:37 PM IST PTI Share via Copy link Thiruvananthapuram, The IMD, along with its technical partners
1 days ago
, the state cybercrime department, has initiated action against the alleged illegal operations of across the state and issued notices to to remove applications facilitating unauthorised bike taxi operations, according to a report by The on Friday
1 days ago
Booked for the screen: Upcoming movies and web series adapted from bestsellersRanveer Singh might not be seen as Lord Shiva in the film adaptation of The Immortals of Meluha. But these stories from books are headed to your screen Published on: May 16
1 days ago
Social media CEOs once again are being called to testify before the Senate in light of mounting legal and public pressure to protect young users on their platforms. The leaders of Meta, Alphabet, TikTok and Snap were invited to testify next month before the Senate Judiciary Committee
1 days ago
The Election Commission has ordered a probe into allegations of foreign nationals voting in the Tamil Nadu Assembly election. Police arrested ten foreign nationals attempting to fly out after noticing indelible ink on their fingers. These individuals, from Sri Lanka, the UK, and Canada
1 days ago
Don't miss out on muskmelon this summer: Fortis Delhi gastroenterologist shares its health benefitsMuskmelon is an underrated fruit that provides multiple health benefits in summer, explains Dr Shubham Vatsya. Updated on: May 16, 2026 1:46 PM IST By Debapriya Bhattacharya Share via Copy link Summer
1 days ago
