California
Hundreds set to be laid from Meta’s Reality Labs division
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As Meta continues to shift its business model away from developing the metaverse and toward building an artificial intelligence platform, the company confirmed plans to lay off hundreds of employees in California.
A majority of the workers laid off in the recent worker adjustment and retraining notification (WARN) filing stem from the company’s “Reality Labs” division. This information backs up a report from the New York Times, which stated that the company was planning to lay off about 1,500 workers, or about 10 percent of its Reality Labs division.
California’s WARN notice revealed that the company intended to permanently lay off 272 employees by March 20, 2026. The company will specifically cut ties with 53 employees at its Playa Vista location in Los Angeles County and 219 employees at its Burlingame location in San Mateo County.
Beyond California, Meta filed a WARN notice in Washington, revealing that it would lay off 331 employees across the state. According to the notice, employees are expected to receive their benefits and pay up until the day they separate from the company.
The notice did not include information about any potential severance packages being offered by the company. The affected positions ranged from game developers, data engineers, software engineers, AI researchers and more across several of the company’s departments, for the Metaverse Content Group, Horizon OS, and Reality Lab Group, to name a few.
USA Today reached out to Meta for comment regarding the layoffs, but did not receive a response by the time of publication.
Why is Meta shifting focus from the metaverse?
In 2021, CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced that his company would be changing its name from Facebook to Meta, to reflect its growing focus on the metaverse. As part of the company’s transition, it invested heavily in Reality Labs, formerly known as Oculus VR, to support the research and development of virtual and augmented reality hardware and software.
Meta initially invested $10 billion into the company to fund its research into new technologies. However, the company’s 2024 fourth-quarter earnings revealed that Meta had lost more than $60 billion in operating costs.
“Our outlook reflects an expectation for continued strong ad revenue growth, partially offset by lower year-over-year Reality Labs revenue in the fourth quarter,” reads the company’s 2025 third-quarter report.
Meta will announce its 2025 fourth-quarter earnings on Jan. 28, 2026, and continue its focus on developing the company’s AI capabilities.
“We are at an exciting point for our company, where we have continued runway to improve our core services today as well as the opportunity to build new AI-powered experiences and services that will transform how people engage with our products in the future,” Meta said in its 2025 third-quarter report. “Next year will enable us to continue to deliver strong revenue growth in 2026, while our progress on AI models and products will position us to capitalize on new revenue opportunities in the years to come.”
At the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Meta’s Chief Technology Officer, Andrew Bosworth, revealed a significant achievement for the company’s AI platform, according to Reuters.
The company’s new AI lab, Meta Platforms, had rapidly developed a “high-profile model” months after the company launched the lab. Although Bosworth did not provide an example of this new AI platform at the Davos event, he noted that it showed “a lot of promise,” according to Reuters.
Noe Padilla is a Northern California Reporter for USA Today. Contact him at npadilla@usatodayco.com, follow him on X @1NoePadilla or on Bluesky @noepadilla.bsky.social. Sign up for the TODAY Californian newsletter or follow us on Facebook at TODAY Californian.
California
Two California Powerhouse Football Programs Will Clash For First Time Since 2015
Two of California’s most storied high school football programs are set to clash this upcoming 2026 season.
Concord De La Salle will host Corona Centennial on September 25 this upcoming fall in a supreme NorCal versus SoCal matchup. It will be the first time the two programs play against each other since they met in the 2015 state championship. De La Salle won 28-21.
De La Salle (12-1 in 2025) is coming off another championship season after winning the North Coast Section Open Division title with a 24-17 win over Pittsburg.
Centennial (11-2) didn’t take home any silverware, but had one of the program’s most successful seasons after beating Mater Dei twice and earning its way to the CIF Southern Section Division 1 final.
WHAT MAKES THE MATCHUP LEGENDARY?
When considering the winning tradition and history of each program, it’s not hard to dial this game up as a marquee matchup. It will certainly be labeled the ‘Game of the Week’ locally and regionally, and maybe even nationally.
De La Salle is most notably known for its historic 151-game winning streak from 1992 to 2004. The program has won 40 CIF North Coast Section titles, 18 CIF State titles, and six national championships, according to the school’s website.
Centennial has won 10 CIF Southern Section championships, all under coach Matt Logan. The Huskies won a CIF State title in 2008, and that win came over De La Salle led by NFL linebacker
COACHING PEDIGREE
The coaching matchup makes this game special, too. But there’s where Centennial might have the edge with Matt Logan, who has more than 300 wins in his career along with 10 CIF titles.
Logan became just the 15th coach in California history to reach the 300-win mark this past October. Simi Valley’s Jim Benkert, who currently sits at 314, is the only other active coach, according to history records kept by CalHiSports. Logan started at Centennial in 1997.
De La Salle’s Justin Alumbaugh will enter his 14th season at the helm this coming fall. He’s won the top division in the North Coast Section every year since he’s been at the controls. Alumbaugh holds a career coaching record of 148-21.
CENTENNIAL 2026 SCHEDULE
- AUG. 21: at Servite
- AUG. 28: vs. Santa Margarita
- SEPT. 11: at Mater Dei
- SEPT. 18: vs. Rancho Cucamonga
- SEPT. 25: at De La Salle
- OCT. 2: at Vista Murrieta*
- OCT. 9: vs. Murrieta Valley*
- OCT. 15: vs. Norco*
- OCT. 23: at Chaparral*
- OCT. 29: at Murrieta Mesa*
De La Salle has not released its 2026 schedule yet.
California
Uber and Rivian plan to bring robotaxis to California
Uber is expanding its role in the robotaxi industry through a new partnership with Rivian, the Irvine-based electric-vehicle maker.
Uber and Rivian announced a partnership Thursday that could bring up to 50,000 self-driving R2 vehicles to cities across the U.S., Canada and Europe by 2031.
The Rivian robotaxis would be available exclusively through Uber’s ride-hailing app.
The partnership will begin with Uber’s purchase of 10,000 fully autonomous R2s, with the option to purchase 40,000 more in 2030. Uber’s investment is subject to the achievement of autonomous performance milestones, the companies said in a news release.
Uber could invest as much as $1.25 billion in Rivian through 2031. It already has committed to spending $300 million on the effort.
The first robotaxi deployments are planned for San Francisco and Miami in 2028, followed by 23 more cities, the release said.
“We couldn’t be more excited about this partnership with Uber,” Rivian Chief Executive RJ Scaringe said in a statement. “It will help accelerate our path to level 4 autonomy to create one of the safest and most convenient autonomous platforms in the world.”
The R2 is Rivian’s highly anticipated lower-priced SUV, starting at $48,490 for consumers in 2027. Investors hope the more affordable model will boost sales amid declining federal support for electric vehicles.
The company impressed investors with better than expected yearly earnings last month, but has laid off hundreds of employees over the last year.
Rivian is just the latest robotaxi partnership for Uber, which has established itself as a key player in the burgeoning market of self-driving cars.
Last month, Uber announced a set of services known as Uber Autonomous Solutions to offer robotaxi ventures access to its customers, data and software.
Uber is partnering with Volkswagen to bring self-driving ID. Buzz minivans to Los Angeles this year. It’s also teamed up with Silicon Valley-based EV maker Lucid to launch robotaxis later this year and has partnered with robotaxi leader Waymo in Austin and Atlanta.
Rivian announced its third-generation autonomy platform in December, which will launch in the R2 in late 2026. It includes 11 cameras, five radars and one lidar, a laser-based radar.
Rivian robotaxis will compete against Waymo, which operates in 10 major cities, and Elon Musk’s Tesla.
Amazon-backed Zoox also is serving the public in San Francisco and Las Vegas in purpose-built, pill-shaped autonomous vehicles with no steering wheel or gas pedal.
Uber shares, which have slid around 8% this year, gave up around 2% on Thursday, closing at $75.34. Rivian shares, which have fallen 18% this year, rose nearly 4% to $16.12.
California
Central California health leaders monitor for tuberculosis, stressing testing and treatment
FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) — Thousands of people in California are diagnosed with tuberculosis each year. Health leaders in Central California say they continue monitoring cases closely across the region.
State health data show that in 2025, more than 2,100 people were infected with tuberculosis statewide.
“Tuberculosis is highly contagious. It can be transferred from one person to another simply by talking, singing, coughing or sneezing. This bacteria can be transmitted from one person to another,” said Leticia Berber, a health education specialist with the Fresno County Department of Public Health.
Tuberculosis typically affects the lungs and appears in two forms: active and inactive, also known as latent TB.
“The latent is often referred to as like bacteria that are asleep in your body, and so you can’t get sick from it. You can’t spread it to others,” said Dr. Ignacio Santana, Merced County health officer. “Active TB, on the other hand, which is a second form, the bacteria are awake and they’re making people sick.”
Health leaders in Central California say they are consistently testing and treating latent cases of tuberculosis.
According to the California Department of Public Health, Fresno County reported 50 cases of tuberculosis in 2025, while Merced County reported five cases. In 2024, Fresno County recorded 52 cases and Merced County reported 11.
Santana said health officials remain vigilant, adding that many tuberculosis cases originate outside the United States.
“80% of the TB cases in the US are due to people who are born in a high-incidence country,” he said.
Berber said Fresno County has documented 15 tuberculosis cases so far this year. Health leaders say tuberculosis can be treated, particularly when diagnosed early.
“If we have a latent TB, this individual can take medication for up to three months. Every day, there is a pill to take. This treatment can take up to three to 12 months, depending on the individual’s health status,” Berber said.
Active tuberculosis cases require more aggressive treatment.
Health officials say recognizing symptoms early, wearing masks and undergoing screening remain the most effective ways to prevent the spread of tuberculosis.
For news updates, follow Ana Torrea on Facebook, X and Instagram.
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