In a recent lawsuit filed in the San Francisco County Superior Court, Yuet-Peng Cheong, a former product manager at Meta, alleges that the tech giant retaliated against her after she raised concerns regarding inflated revenue projections related to their generative artificial intelligence (AI) initiatives. Cheong, who worked at Meta for three years, described her transition to the company’s generative AI department in August 2022 as a "dream come true," but asserted that it quickly devolved into a “nightmare.”
The events leading to this lawsuit began after OpenAI's release of ChatGPT, which prompted Meta's leadership to prioritise the development of generative AI. According to the lawsuit, Maryam Gholami, Cheong’s supervisor, ordered company data scientists to inflate revenue-growth estimates for ad sales associated with generative AI by a substantial $1.5 billion, a figure Cheong claimed was “pulled out of thin air.” Cheong argued that there was “no clear path” for the AI division to meet this new revenue target, leading her to question Gholami about the assumptions behind the projections.
Cheong voiced her concerns, suggesting that manipulating revenue targets could artificially inflate Meta's stock price at a time when it was struggling. In response, Gholami allegedly rebuffed Cheong's concerns, instead instructing her to "stay in her lane." This exchange was said to escalate into hostile behaviour from Gholami towards Cheong, who claimed the assistant was concerned about her potentially disclosing the inflated projections to higher management.
The lawsuit detailed various instances of alleged bullying and intimidation, including Gholami’s decision to exclude Cheong from key meetings with Meta's CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, despite her initial selection for those discussions. Cheong reported that when she raised this issue with other managers, the response was not to address her concerns but rather to alert Gholami, further compounding her alleged harassment.
In early 2023, Cheong requested emergency leave to care for her father, who was facing a serious health crisis. Shortly after, Gholami demanded Cheong produce an advertising strategy within a rigid timeframe, which the lawsuit argued constituted an infringement on her rights during a critical family emergency. Following her return from leave, Cheong alleged that she was assigned to a project which Gholami intended to cancel, describing this as a method of harassment.
Despite her multiple complaints to management and human resources regarding Gholami’s treatment, Cheong claims that the internal investigation was inadequate, culminating in her termination in June 2022 shortly after hiring an attorney to represent her case. Cheong is now seeking unspecified damages as a result of her claims against Meta.
In a response to these allegations, Meta issued a statement, labelling Cheong's claims as “without merit” and expressing its intention to defend vigorously against them. The case underscores ongoing challenges around workplace practices in major tech companies, particularly regarding how dissent is handled and the implications it may have for employees who raise valid concerns.
Source: Noah Wire Services