Meta's Ambitious Leap: Billions Invested in New 'Superintelligence' Lab Amid AI Race

After AI setbacks, Meta bets billions on undefined "superintelligence"

Meta has developed plans to create a new artificial intelligence research lab dedicated to pursuing "superintelligence," according to reporting from The New York Times. The social media giant chose 28-year-old Alexandr Wang, founder and CEO of Scale AI, to join the new lab as part of a broader reorganization of Meta's AI efforts under CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Superintelligence refers to a hypothetical AI system that would exceed human cognitive abilities -- a step beyond artificial general intelligence (AGI), which aims to match an intelligent human's capability for learning new tasks without intensive specialized training. However, much like AGI, superintelligence remains a nebulous term in the field. Since scientists still poorly understand the mechanics of human intelligence, and because human intelligence resists simple quantification with no single definition, identifying superintelligence when it arrives will present significant challenges. Computers already far surpass humans in certain forms of information processing such as calculations, but this narrow superiority doesn't qualify as superintelligence under most definitions. The pursuit assumes we'll recognize it when we see it, despite the conceptual fuzziness. AI researcher Dr. Margaret Mitchell told Ars Technica in April 2024 that there will "likely never be agreement on comparisons between human and machine intelligence" but predicted that "men in positions of power and influence, particularly ones with investments in AI, will declare that AI is smarter than humans" regardless of the reality. The new lab represents Meta's effort to remain competitive in the increasingly crowded AI race, where tech giants continue pouring billions into research and talent acquisition. Meta has reportedly offered compensation packages worth seven to nine figures to dozens of researchers from companies like OpenAI and Google, according to The New York Times, with some already agreeing to join the company. Meta joins a growing list of tech giants making bold claims about advanced AI development. In January, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman wrote in a blog post that "we are now confident we know how to build AGI as we have traditionally understood it." Earlier, in September 2024, Altman predicted that the AI industry might develop superintelligence "in a few thousand days." Elon Musk made an even more aggressive prediction in April 2024, saying that AI would be "smarter than the smartest human" by "next year, within two years."

Report: Meta taps Scale AI's Alexandr Wang to join new 'superintelligence' lab | TechCrunch

Meta plans to unveil a new AI research lab dedicated to "superintelligence" as the company works to compete in the AI race, according to several reports. Meta has tapped Scale AI founder and CEO Alexandr Wang to join the new lab, The New York Times reports. Meta has been in talks to invest billions into Scale AI as part of a deal that would bring Scale AI employees to Meta. Meta has also been poaching lead researchers from OpenAI and Google, per the Times. The new lab comes as Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg grows frustrated with his company's AI shortfalls. Bloomberg reports he has been meeting with AI researchers and engineers at his homes in Lake Tahoe and Palo Alto to personally recruit a team of around 50 people, including a new head of AI research. Sources told Bloomberg that Zuckerberg believes Meta can and should outpace other tech companies gunning to achieve AGI, the still-undefined idea that AI systems could exceed human performance in many tasks.

Meta Supercharges AI Projects in Bid To Make Llama Everyone's Go-To Platform

The Meta CEO is said to be hiring about 50 members for a new team working on AI-driven projects including artificial general intelligence. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg wants to increase the pace of artificial intelligence innovations at his company, so much so that he's personally recruiting about 50 staffers for a new brain trust, according to a Bloomberg report. The new "superintelligence group" would be primarily focused on achieving artificial general intelligence, or AGI, which would bring the technology closer to performing as well (or presumably better) than humans at tasks. According to the report, the new team would work closely with Zuckerberg and the technology they develop would likely be rolled into AI-focused product the company is working on such as Meta AI chatbots and the company's Meta AI Glasses project. The team would also work with Scale AI, which offers data and AI models and apps to companies. Scale AI's CEO Alexandr Wang could join Zuckerberg's team, the report says. Meta has delayed release of AI models amid speculation that the company is struggling with its Llama AI platform. It is actively competing with some of the largest tech companies in the world, including OpenAI, Microsoft, Google and even Apple to advance its AI technology. Unlike OpenAI and Google, Meta's AI feels contained within and mainly relevant to its own platforms, such as Instagram and WhatsApp, and isn't necessarily anyone's go-to when they're reaching for a general AI chatbot. But if Meta can beat its rivals to AGI, it still stands a chance of competing for your attention in our increasingly AI-driven world. A representative for Meta did not immediately return a request for comment.

Mark Zuckerberg Personally Hiring to Create New "Superintelligence" AI Team

Mark Zuckerberg, frustrated with Meta Platforms Inc.'s shortfalls in AI, is assembling a team of experts to achieve artificial general intelligence, recruiting from a brain trust of AI researchers and engineers who've met with him in recent weeks at his homes in Lake Tahoe and Palo Alto. Zuckerberg has prioritized recruiting for the secretive new team, referred to internally as a superintelligence group, according to people familiar with his plans. He has an audacious goal in mind, these people said. In his view, Meta can and should outstrip other tech companies in achieving what's known as artificial general intelligence or AGI, the notion that machines can perform as well as humans at many tasks. Once Meta reaches that milestone, it could weave the capability into its suite of products -- not just social media and communications platforms, but also a range of AI tools, including the Meta chatbot and its AI-powered Ray-Ban glasses.

Meta Hires Top Researchers From Google, Sesame for New AI Lab

Meta Platforms Inc. has poached top engineers from multiple tech firms, including Alphabet Inc.'s Google, for a new team focused on achieving a more advanced form of AI called artificial general intelligence. Jack Rae, a principal researcher at Google DeepMind, is expected to join Meta's "superintelligence" team, according to multiple people familiar with the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity as the information is not public. Meta has also recruited Johan Schalkwyk, a machine learning lead at AI voice startup Sesame AI Inc., other people said.

Meta is reportedly forming an "AI Superintelligence" team

Meta chief Mark Zuckerberg has been recruiting experts to join a team he's assembling to achieve AI superintelligence, according to Bloomberg and The New York Times. Zuckerberg has reportedly been discussing potential recruits with other senior leaders from the company in a WhatsApp group chat dubbed "Recruiting Party." He reportedly has a personal list of recruits, which include AI researchers, infrastructure engineers and other entrepreneurs. Zuckerberg has invited them to lunch and dinner at his homes in California to get them to join his team over the past month. At the moment, the immediate goal of AI companies is to achieve true artificial general intelligence (AGI), wherein a machine has human-level intelligence and can achieve any task a human can do. Superintelligence is a step beyond that. An AI system with superintelligence is supposed to have intellectual powers far beyond any human's. The Times says Zuckerberg has already tapped Alexandr Wang, the founder of AI startup Scale AI, to join the new team. Meta is planning to invest billions of dollars into Wang's company, which provides other AI companies with data to train their models. The deal will also bring Scale's other employees onboard Meta, though it's unclear if any of them are joining the new team, as well. Meta has also offered dozens of AI experts from other companies, including Google and Open AI, compensation packages worth seven to nine figures to join the team. Some, according to The Times, have already agreed. In his pitch to potential recruits, Zuckerberg apparently said that his company's advertising business can finance its own AI development even if it costs tens of billions of dollars, unlike rivals who have to raise funds first. Zuckerberg, Bloomberg said, decided to oversee recruitment himself due to frustration over the quality of and the public's response to Meta's Llama 4 large language model. Llama 4 wasn't well-received, and critics argued that Meta overpromised but underdelivered. The company also had to delay the release of its "Behemoth" Llama 4 model, which the company vowed will outperform "GPT-4.5, Claude Sonnet 3.7, and Gemini 2.0 Pro on several STEM benchmarks."

Meta forming new AI lab helmed by Scale AI CEO Alex Wang, report says

The research lab is going to pursue a concept known as "superintelligence," which is an AI system that surpasses human intelligence, The New York Times reported Tuesday. Meta is also in advanced talks to invest more than $10 billion in Scale AI, according to a report from Bloomberg. Scale AI declined to comment. Meta did not respond to CNBC's request for comment. The reported research lab is Meta's latest effort to gain an edge in the fiercely competitive AI development space. Meta has been pouring billions of dollars into the technology, announcing plans to spend as much as $65 billion in capital expenditures for AI infrastructure this year.

Meta races to build 'superintelligent' AI as Zuckerberg takes charge

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is now taking personal control of a bold and secretive mission: building a superintelligent AI that could outperform human capabilities. According to a Bloomberg report, Zuckerberg is forming a handpicked team to pursue this ambitious vision, signaling his growing frustration with Meta's recent AI progress. He has reportedly hosted a series of in-depth meetings with top AI experts at his private homes in Lake Tahoe and Palo Alto, California. While Meta has declined to comment, sources suggest that the CEO's involvement marks a new phase in Meta's push to compete with leading players like OpenAI.

Zuckerberg is reportedly assembling a 'superintelligence group' for Meta AI

Frustrated by Meta's progress in the AI arms race, Mark Zuckerberg is personally recruiting AI experts for a "superintelligence group," according to Bloomberg. The report said Zuckerberg wants to assemble a supergroup with around 50 members, with the goal of achieving artificial general intelligence (AGI) and beyond. Though definitions vary, AGI generally refers to artificial intelligence that equals human intelligence. Superintelligence is the term for AI that's smarter than humans, though this remains mostly hypothetical. Zuckerberg has reportedly gone into "founder mode," taking a hands-on approach to compete with AI rivals like Google and OpenAI. The Meta CEO was reportedly disappointed by the response to its latest model, Llama 4, which failed to outperform other frontier models on LMArena, the leaderboard where it's currently topped by Google's Gemini 2.5 Pro and OpenAI's o4 models. Then there was the whole mini scandal where Meta was caught gaming the leaderboard by submitting a version of Llama 4 that wasn't available to the public, according to The Verge. According to Bloomberg, Zuckerberg has reportedly created a WhatsApp group with senior Meta leadership called "Recruiting Party" to brainstorm top talent and woo AI researchers, engineers, and entrepreneurs to join the Meta supergroup. The report says Zuckerberg has been hosting lunches and dinners to personally recruit members. According to a separate report from the New York Times, Meta is offering compensation packages of seven to nine figures. The Times also said Scale AI CEO Alexendr Wang is joining the group. The superintelligence lab would try to improve Llama performance and develop new AI tools and features that can eventually be integrated into the Meta AI chatbot on Meta platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. Meta has also rebooted its AI glasses efforts and is reportedly planning to include facial recognition technology and position the Ray-Ban Meta AI glasses as a smarter virtual assistant. Google is also working on AI-powered XR glasses, and OpenAI is similarly exploring an omnipresent AI companion with a device developed in partnership with Jony Ive's startup io.

Meta building superintelligence team with nine-figure pay in AI push, reports say

Why it matters: Cost doesn't matter in the race for AI dominance. Catch up quick: The Times reported that Scale AI founder Alexandr Wang would join a new Meta lab, which is intended to develop an AI with powers that ultimately exceed those of the human brain. The intrigue: Per the Times, Meta has offered compensation packages between seven and nine figures to AI researchers from top competitors, some of whom have accepted. For the record: Neither Meta nor Scale were immediately available for comment early Tuesday. What to watch: In the highly competitive and lavishly funded industry, such big-ticket efforts don't usually go unanswered.

Meta is making a huge push for AI 'superintelligence'

Mark Zuckerberg doesn't just want Meta (META) to be smart -- he wants it to be super smart. The CEO is reportedly creating an AI lab to pursue "superintelligence" as Meta jockeys for position at the forefront of an ever-crowded AI field. Zuckerberg is largely focused on achieving artificial general intelligence (AGI) -- a currently theoretical humanlike level of intelligence where a machine can perform any task a person can. Meta could then weave that AGI across its product suite -- chatbots, augmented reality glasses, and more. According to Bloomberg, Zuckerberg has been personally recruiting top AI talent and has been prioritizing the staffing and development of this new team, which is being referred to internally as a "superintelligence group," according to people familiar with the matter. The Meta CEO is reportedly looking to hire 50 people for the team, which he hopes will make his company a leader in AI. Meta is reportedly in talks for a $10 billion-plus investment in Scale AI -- a data platform company that helps companies train models -- and the company will likely play a big role in Zuckerberg's plans. Alexandr Wang, the company's founder and CEO (and former housemate of OpenAI's Sam Altman), has been tapped to join Meta's venture, and the investment deal is poised to bring other Scale AI employees to Meta. Other researchers from Meta's rivals have reportedly been offered seven- to nine-figure deals to jump ship. Sources told The New York Times that the superintelligence lab is part of a larger reorganization effort and comes at a time when Zuckerberg has been frustrated by failing product releases, such as Llama 4, which has been questioned both internally and externally by developers. Despite Zuckerberg's claims that Meta's Llama model worked as well as (or better than) models from industry leaders, researchers largely decided that Meta's model was designed to look more advanced than it actually was. As a a result, the company delayed plans to release its next iteration, "Behemoth," with the Wall Street Journal reporting that Meta's brass was worried the model didn't sufficiently improve on previous models. Sources told Bloomberg that these missteps have led Zuckerberg to get more involved in the company's AI dealings. The CEO has reportedly created a WhatsApp group with top execs called "Recruiting Party" to find talent it will try to hire away to help with Meta's efforts. While Meta has invested billions in AI, it still lags behind others in the field. OpenAI's ChatGPT continues to rake in money -- and has increased its paid user base by 50% in three months. Microsoft (MSFT) has invested more than $13 billion in OpenAI, and its stock has soared as investors see that the company's aggressive moves are paying off. Amazon (AMZN) has poured more than $8 billion into startup Anthropic -- and is continuing to make big investments to expand its data services. And Google (GOOGL) has continued to develop its AI research lab, DeepMind, which Google parent Alphabet bought in 2014. So Zuckerberg needs Meta's AI lab to be super -- in more ways than one.

Who is Alexandr Wang? Scale AI's young billionaire CEO will head Meta's new 'superintelligence' lab

The lab will be dedicated to pursuing AI "superintelligence" -- an AI system that would reportedly surpasses human intelligence -- and is part of Meta's larger reorganization of its AI efforts as it faces internal struggles over the technology and some of its products, per the Times. Meta is just one of many tech companies to throw its hat into the competitive, high-stakes -- and expensive -- AI development space. Back in January of this year, Meta's CEO Mark Zuckerberg said the social technology company plans to invest between $60 billion to $65 billion in capital expenditures this year alone to build out its AI infrastructure. (Meta is also building a large data center that would reportedly "cover a significant part of Manhattan" to power its AI offerings, according to Zuckerberg.) Scale AI delivers high-quality training data for AI applications to a number of tech companies in the AI space, including: OpenAI, Google, Microsoft, and of course, Meta. The company expects revenue to more than double to $2 billion this year, from about $870 million in 2024, per CNBC.

Meta reportedly forming superintelligence lab amid Llama 4 Behemoth delays - SiliconANGLE

Meta reportedly forming superintelligence lab amid Llama 4 Behemoth delays Meta Platforms Inc. is reportedly forming a new lab to develop superintelligence, a term for artificial intelligence models that can outperform humans at many tasks. The New York Times detailed the initiative today. Alexandr Wang, the co-founder and chief executive of Scale AI Inc., is expected to join the lab. Several other employees of the startup will reportedly also take up roles at the new unit. According to The Information, Wang is joining Meta as part of a deal that will see the Facebook parent invest $14.8 billion in Scale AI for a 49% stake. That implies a valuation of about $30 billion. Scale AI was worth $13.8 billion following its most recent funding round last year, which included the participation of Meta, Nvidia Corp. and other tech giants. The steep valuation increase is a reflection of the company's rapid revenue growth. Scale AI reportedly expects to end the year with sales of more than $2 billion, up from $870 million in 2024. San Francisco-based Scale AI provides a platform through which organizations source training data for their AI projects. The company relies on a network of more than 100,000 professionals to produce that data. One of Scale AI's main specialties is providing annotations, text snippets that describe the items in an AI training dataset. Such explainers make it easier for AI models to learn patterns. Scale AI also competes in the AI tooling market. It provides software that companies can use to prevent their AI models from hallucinating and equip them with RAG, or retrieval-augmented generation, features. It's unclear what role Wang will hold at Meta's new superintelligence lab. According to the Wall Street Journal, Meta recently informed employees that it was "finalizing details on its plans for AI leadership." Scale AI is not the only AI company from which Meta is recruiting experts for the lab. The Times' sources said that the Facebook parent has also extended offers to dozens of researchers at OpenAI, Google LLC and other market players. It's believed that several of the researchers have already agreed to join. The recruiting drive reportedly began after Meta's in-house AI development efforts encountered challenges. In April, it previewed a new large language model called Llama 4 Behemoth that features more than 2 trillion parameters. According to the Journal, the company has decided to delay the LLM's release over concerns about its output quality. The reported terms of Meta's Scale AI investment are similar to two recent transactions inked by fellow tech giants. In August, Google hired the founders of Character.AI Inc. and agreed to pay the AI startup $2.7 billion. Earlier, Microsoft Corp. recruited two co-founders of LLM developer Inflection AI Inc. as part of a deal reportedly worth $650 million.

Zuckerberg Assembling 'Superintelligence' AI Team at Meta, Report Says

The new team, being built from AI researchers and engineers, has been referred to internally at Meta as a "superintelligence group," Bloomberg said. Meta Platforms (META) CEO Mark Zuckerberg reportedly is building a team of 50 AI experts aimed at beating the company's tech rivals in achieving artificial general intelligence (AGI). AGI is AI with a human level of cognitive function, including the ability to self-teach. Citing people familiar with Zuckerberg's plans, Bloomberg reported that the Facebook founder has been "frustrated with Meta Platforms Inc.'s shortfalls in AI." The new team, being built from AI researchers and engineers, has been referred to internally at Meta as a "superintelligence group" and will sit near him at Meta's headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif. Zuckerberg's "desire to micromanage the recruitment effort is driven in part by frustration over the quality of and response to Llama 4," Meta's latest large language model (LLM), the report said. The Wall Street Journal reported last month that Meta was pushing back the launch of its "Behemoth" AI model, the new version of Llama 4, amid concerns about whether enough improvements had been made compared to previous iterations. Meta shares, which entered Tuesday up nearly 20% this year, are about 1% higher in premarket trading.

Meta Is Reportedly Offering Up to Nine-Figure Pay for Researchers on Its New Superintelligence AI Team

Meta is putting together a new 50-person team to pursue superintelligence, or AI that surpasses human intelligence in every aspect, including memory, reasoning, and knowledge. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, 41, has been personally assembling a group of experts to join the secretive superintelligence team, inviting leading AI researchers and engineers at other companies to meet with him at his homes in Palo Alto and Lake Tahoe to discuss offers, according to a Bloomberg report on Tuesday. Zuckerberg wants Meta to be the first company to achieve superintelligence, outpacing rivals like OpenAI and Google, and bring advanced AI capabilities to Meta's products, including its chatbot and AI-powered Ray-Ban smart glasses. Related: Meta Lays Off Virtual Reality Division Employees: 'Deeply Saddened' According to The New York Times, Zuckerberg has offered potential superintelligence team members compensation packages ranging from seven to nine figures -- and some have already accepted the offer. One reported recruit is 28-year-old billionaire AI startup founder Alexandr Wang. Meta is in talks to invest up to $10 billion in Wang's company, Scale AI, which was valued at nearly $14 billion last year with backing from Amazon and Microsoft. The deal would mark Meta's largest external investment yet. Wang and other Scale AI employees are expected to join the superintelligence team after the deal closes, per Bloomberg. The outlet also reports that seating arrangements at Meta's Menlo Park headquarters now reflect Zuckerberg's focus on superintelligence as the CEO goes "founder mode" and takes a more hands-on management approach -- reportedly by reorganizing desks at headquarters so that new staff on the superintelligence team will sit close to him. Related: Meta Ends Fact-Checking Program, Replaces It With New System: 'We've Seen This Approach Work on X' The approach arises as Meta loses AI talent to competitors. Menlo Ventures venture capitalist Deedy Das posted to X on Monday that though Meta offers more than $2 million per year for AI talent, it has lost multiple AI researchers this week alone to OpenAI and Anthropic. "The AI talent wars are absolutely ridiculous," Das wrote. Zuckerberg said in May that more than one billion users tap into Meta AI every month across the company's family of apps.

Meta builds AI superintelligence lab, eyes $10 billion deal with Scale AI's Alexandr Wang

Meta is launching a new AI lab focused on creating "superintelligence" -- systems more powerful than the human mind. As part of the plan, Scale AI founder Alexandr Wang will join the effort, with Meta also negotiating a potential $10 billion investment in his company. The move is a bold step in Meta's restructuring of its AI strategy, as it competes with giants like Google and Microsoft. CEO Mark Zuckerberg has committed up to $65 billion for AI infrastructure this year.Meta is setting up a new artificial intelligence research lab with a bold goal: to develop "superintelligence," a system that could surpass human cognitive abilities. The news, first reported by The New York Times, marks Meta's most ambitious AI project to date. At the centre of this effort is Alexandr Wang, the 28-year-old founder and CEO of Scale AI. He is expected to play a leading role in the new lab's operations. Meta is also in advanced discussions to invest over $10 billion in his start-up, according to a separate report by Bloomberg. The deal may also see a number of Scale AI staff transition to Meta. Both companies declined to comment on the reports. Wang has emerged as one of the most prominent figures in the AI industry. His company, Scale AI, supplies data infrastructure essential for training large language models -- the same kind used in AI systems like ChatGPT. His addition to Meta's team reflects a larger recruitment drive by the tech giant. According to sources cited by The New York Times, Meta has offered compensation packages ranging from seven to nine figures to top researchers from rivals like Google and OpenAI. Some have already agreed to come on board. Meta's push to hire top AI minds comes amid internal challenges. The company has faced management struggles, employee churn and several underwhelming product launches in its AI division, two of the people familiar with the matter told the paper. Mark Zuckerberg, Meta's chief executive, is not new to the AI race. After losing a bid to acquire DeepMind in 2013 -- a key moment that propelled Google's AI efforts -- he launched Meta's first dedicated AI lab the same year. Since then, Meta has invested heavily in AI, building tools for content moderation, recommendation engines, and now, generative applications. Zuckerberg sees 2025 as a turning point. "AI is potentially one of the most important innovations in history," he said in February. "This year is going to set the course for the future." Meta has earmarked up to $65 billion for capital spending on AI infrastructure this year alone. Meta is not the only tech firm placing massive bets on AI. Microsoft has invested over $13 billion in OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT. Amazon has pumped $8 billion into Anthropic, while Google paid $3 billion last year to license technology and recruit talent from Character.AI, a start-up known for its conversational bots. These companies are all chasing artificial general intelligence (AGI), a system that can replicate human intelligence across any domain. Meta, however, is setting its sights even higher -- superintelligence, which would go beyond AGI in both scope and performance. While superintelligence remains a theoretical goal, it's considered by leading researchers to be the ultimate destination for AI development. Even before the formation of this new lab, Meta had begun rolling out AI products at scale. Last month, the company revealed that its AI assistant now supports over a billion monthly active users across apps like Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. In February, CNBC reported that Meta was preparing to launch a stand-alone Meta AI app in the second quarter, along with a paid-subscription model similar to OpenAI's ChatGPT. Despite the high costs and intense competition, Meta appears determined to lead the next wave of AI innovation -- and with Wang on board, it's signalling that this ambition is more than just talk. The stakes are clear. If Meta succeeds, it won't just catch up to its rivals -- it could redefine the field. With billions in play, the hiring of Wang, and a lab focused on the frontier of AI capabilities, Meta is gambling big on a future where machines might not just match human minds -- but exceed them. For the industry, and for users around the world, the outcome of this gamble will shape the direction of technology for years to come.

Zuckerberg's 'Fantastic 50': World's 2nd richest man is hiring elite coders with million-dollar offers to build the most powerful AI brain

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has taken direct charge of building artificial general intelligence (AGI), forming a new superintelligence team of about 50 experts. According to The New York Times and Bloomberg, Zuckerberg is personally recruiting top AI talent with compensation offers reportedly reaching up to nine figures. Zuckerberg is offering some of the most lucrative compensation packages in the tech industry to attract top AI talent. According to reports by The New York Times and Bloomberg, these offers range from high six figures to as much as nine figures, with some candidates already accepting the deals. This aggressive approach underscores Meta's intent to outpace competitors like OpenAI and Google in the race for superintelligence by securing the brightest minds in artificial intelligence. AGI refers to the idea of artificial intelligence that can match or exceed human cognitive abilities across various tasks. While researchers widely debate the timeline -- ranging from years to decades -- Zuckerberg has accelerated Meta's efforts to reach that goal. Frustrated by slow progress, he has invited top recruits to his homes in Palo Alto and Lake Tahoe for one-on-one meetings. The Meta founder has shifted into what Bloomberg calls "founder mode." Office layouts at the Menlo Park headquarters have been rearranged so the superintelligence team works in close proximity to him. This move highlights Zuckerberg's intense personal involvement in steering Meta's AI ambitions. One of the high-profile additions to the team is Alexandr Wang, the 28-year-old founder of Scale AI. Meta is in discussions to invest up to $10 billion in Scale AI -- a company last valued at $14 billion with backing from Amazon and Microsoft. Once the deal closes, Wang and some Scale AI staff are expected to join Meta's superintelligence team. With major rivals such as OpenAI, Google DeepMind, Microsoft, and Elon Musk's xAI also pursuing AGI, Meta is offering aggressive pay packages to secure talent. Compensation ranges from high six figures to over nine figures, and some candidates have already accepted. Zuckerberg aims for Meta to be the first company to achieve superintelligence, incorporating its capabilities into consumer-facing products like Meta's chatbot and AI-powered Ray-Ban smart glasses. Tech companies view AI as both an opportunity and a threat. Meta is trying to differentiate itself by making its Llama AI model open source. Google sees AI as a challenge to its search business, Apple is aware AI could reduce reliance on apps, and OpenAI continues to dominate the current market with ChatGPT. Zuckerberg's plan is to make Meta a leader in the next era of computing through AGI. While the timeline for such technology remains uncertain, Meta's investment signals the growing urgency and competition in the global AI race.

Meta is creating a new AI lab to pursue 'superintelligence'

Meta is reportedly launching a new AI lab focused on "superintelligence," exceeding human brain power. Led by Alexandr Wang of Scale AI, with billions in potential investment, the initiative aims to boost Meta's competitive edge in the intense AI race amid internal struggles and industry-wide efforts to achieve advanced AI.Meta is preparing to unveil a new artificial intelligence research lab dedicated to pursuing "superintelligence," a hypothetical AI system that exceeds the powers of the human brain, as the tech giant jockeys to stay competitive in the technology race, according to four people with the knowledge of the company's plans. Meta has tapped Alexandr Wang, 28, the founder and CEO of AI startup Scale AI, to join the new lab, the people said, and has been in talks to invest billions of dollars in his company as part of a deal that would also bring other Scale AI employees to the company. Meta has offered seven- to nine-figure compensation packages to dozens of researchers from leading AI companies such as OpenAI and Google, with some agreeing to join, according to the people. The new lab is part of a larger reorganization of Meta's AI efforts, the people said. The company, which owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, has recently grappled with internal management struggles over the technology, as well as employee churn and several product releases that fell flat, two of the people said. Mark Zuckerberg, Meta's CEO, has invested billions of dollars into turning his company into an AI powerhouse. Since OpenAI released the ChatGPT chatbot in 2022, the tech industry has raced to build increasingly powerful AI. Zuckerberg has pushed his company to incorporate AI across its products, including in its smart glasses and a recently released app, Meta AI. Staying in the race is crucial for Meta, Google, Amazon and Microsoft, with the technology likely to be the future for the industry. The giants have pumped money into startups and their own AI labs. Microsoft has invested more than $13 billion in OpenAI, while Amazon has plowed $8 billion into the AI startup Anthropic. The behemoths have also spent billions to hire employees from high-profile startups and license their technology. Last year, Google agreed to pay $3 billion to license technology and hire technologists and executives from Character.AI, a startup that builds chatbots for personal conversations. In February, Zuckerberg, 41, called AI "potentially one of the most important innovations in history." He added, "This year is going to set the course for the future." Meta and Scale AI declined to comment. Superintelligence is regarded by leading researchers to be a futuristic goal of AI development. OpenAI, Google and others have said their immediate aim is to build "artificial general intelligence," or AGI, shorthand for a machine that can do anything the human brain can do, which is an ambition with no clear path to success. Superintelligence, if it can be developed, would go beyond AGI in its power. Meta has invested in AI for more than a decade. Zuckerberg created the company's first dedicated AI lab in 2013, after losing out to Google in trying to acquire a seminal startup called DeepMind. DeepMind is now the core of Google's AI efforts. Since then, Meta's research efforts have been overseen by its chief AI scientist, Yann LeCun, who is also a New York University professor. LeCun is a pioneer of neural networks, the technology that drives ChatGPT and similar systems. After ChatGPT caused an explosion of interest in AI, Meta deployed additional resources to pursue the technology. It created a generative AI group, led by Ahmad Al-Dahle, a company vice president. LeCun's research group also began working on what he saw as the next generation of AI. LeCun, who was among three AI researchers who won the 2018 Turing Award, often called the Nobel Prize of computing, is highly respected across the field. But his views on AI differ from others in Silicon Valley. Whereas some believe that current technologies will reach AGI over the next few years, LeCun has said that entirely new ideas are needed to reach this lofty goal. One of Meta's strategies for gaining ground in AI has been to "open source" its software, essentially giving away its AI code freely so that developers and others adopt its tools. The company released an open-source AI model, Llama, and its chatbot product, Meta AI. Meta AI was incorporated across Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, as well as in its Ray-Ban smart glasses. In May, Zuckerberg said more than 1 billion people used Meta AI every month. More recently, Meta's AI division has lost employees to rival companies, according to two people familiar with the matter. The departures were the result of a grueling pace of product development, infighting among team leaders and a tight labor market. In April, Zuckerberg announced two new versions of Meta's Llama AI models, which he claimed performed equal to or better than comparable models from OpenAI and Google, according to testing benchmarks compiled by Meta. Soon after, outside researchers found that Meta's benchmarks were designed to make one product look more sophisticated than it was. Some developers were incensed at what they saw as Meta's trickery. But not as incensed as Zuckerberg, who was upset that people thought he was trying to paper over the poor performance of the latest release, two of the people said. Meta is now betting that Wang will help it get back into pole position in the AI race. It must do so carefully. The Federal Trade Commission recently took Meta to trial in federal court over its acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp. An unusually structured investment deal with Scale AI could help Meta sidestep some of those concerns.

Meta just made a $15 billion move to the AI frontier -- here's why it's backing Scale AI's 28-year-old prodigy

Meta taps Alexandr Wang to lead its bold new AI superintelligence lab, aiming to catch up with giants like OpenAI and Google. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is personally recruiting top talent, including Wang, the founder of Scale AI, in a massive push toward artificial general intelligence (AGI). With billions on the table and plans to hire 50 top researchers, Meta is going all-in. As reports from The New York Times and Bloomberg reveal, this move could reshape the future of AI. Discover what's behind this big tech shake-up, and why this AI lab could change everything.Meta taps Scale AI's Alexandr Wang to lead new AI 'superintelligence' lab- Meta is taking a bold step in the AI race by launching a new artificial intelligence research lab focused on "superintelligence," and the tech giant is bringing in a major name to help lead the way. According to The New York Times, Meta has tapped Alexandr Wang, the CEO and founder of Scale AI, to join this high-stakes initiative. This move signals Meta's intent to aggressively compete in the global race for artificial general intelligence (AGI). Mark Zuckerberg is going all-in on a new high-stakes project: a "superintelligence" lab focused on building AI systems that surpass human-level intelligence. The initiative is still under wraps, but reports say Meta is recruiting around 50 elite engineers and researchers, offering jaw-dropping salaries -- even nine-figure packages -- to lock in the brightest minds. It's a clear sign that Meta is looking to leapfrog rivals like OpenAI and Google DeepMind, who have dominated headlines with GPT and Gemini models. Now, Zuckerberg wants Meta back at the front of the pack -- and fast. Meta's also reportedly backing Scale AI with a deal that could exceed $15 billion, a massive investment in one of the most important companies in the AI infrastructure space. Scale AI, founded by Alexandr Wang, is known for supplying high-quality training data to power advanced AI systems. Its clients include OpenAI, Microsoft, and even the U.S. Department of Defense. By securing a deep partnership with Scale, Meta gains access to frontier data capabilities essential for training and aligning its next-gen models. This deal could end up being Meta's largest external AI investment ever. The story begins with growing frustration at the top. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has reportedly been unhappy with how the company is trailing behind rivals like OpenAI and Google in the AI space. As per Bloomberg, Zuckerberg has started personally meeting top AI minds -- even inviting them to his homes in Lake Tahoe and Palo Alto -- to recruit talent directly. His goal? Build a team of around 50 top researchers and engineers focused solely on one mission: superintelligence. This new lab will operate independently and is expected to focus on creating systems that go far beyond current AI models. Meta wants to build AGI -- artificial general intelligence -- which is still a loosely defined concept but generally refers to AI that can perform a wide range of tasks as well or better than humans. Wang is not just any tech founder -- he's the 27-year-old CEO of Scale AI, a company currently valued at $13.8 billion and considered a crucial player in the AI infrastructure space. Scale AI provides data labeling and model training services used by companies like OpenAI, Meta, Microsoft, and NVIDIA. Bringing Wang into the fold gives Meta a massive edge. Not only is he one of the most well-connected names in AI, but The New York Times reports that Meta is also in talks to invest billions into Scale AI. This deal would allow Meta to bring in Wang's team as well, which could fast-track their progress. Yes, and not quietly either. Alongside Alexandr Wang, Meta has reportedly been poaching top researchers from both OpenAI and Google DeepMind, two of the most advanced AI research centers in the world. According to The New York Times, these recruitment efforts are part of a broader strategy to stack Meta's lab with elite minds capable of pushing boundaries. Zuckerberg is serious about catching up and overtaking rivals. Sources told Bloomberg that he believes Meta "can and should" be a leader in building AGI -- something many experts say could still be decades away, if it's possible at all. Superintelligence is a term that gets thrown around a lot, but here, it refers to AI systems that could eventually surpass human intelligence in reasoning, problem-solving, creativity, and decision-making. It's the next level beyond large language models like ChatGPT or Meta's LLaMA. Meta wants to be the company that builds this kind of system -- not just a smarter chatbot, but a machine that can reason like a human or better. That's a huge leap, and it's one that would put Meta in a dominant position across industries, from healthcare to defense to education. That's the billion-dollar question. Meta has the money, the platform (think: Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp), and now, it seems, the talent. But it still trails companies like OpenAI and Google DeepMind when it comes to cutting-edge AI research. With this new lab, plus the potential multi-billion-dollar investment in Scale AI, Zuckerberg is betting big -- not just on the future of Meta, but on the future of how AI shapes society. And he's doing it fast. It's also worth noting that Meta has already introduced LLaMA 3, its latest open-source AI model, in 2024 -- and plans for LLaMA 4 are underway. Still, with this lab, the goal shifts from catching up to leading. Meta's move to tap Alexandr Wang and launch a new superintelligence lab is more than just a headline -- it's a sign that the competition for AGI is heating up. With other tech giants making their own AI breakthroughs, the next few years could define not only the future of Meta but also how the world interacts with intelligent systems. One thing is clear: Meta doesn't just want to participate in the AI race -- it wants to win it. Q1: What is Meta's new AI superintelligence lab about? It's a new AI lab focused on building AGI and led by Scale AI's Alexandr Wang. Q2: Why did Meta tap Alexandr Wang for its AI lab? Because Wang leads Scale AI, a major name in AI data and infrastructure.

Mark Zuckerberg Is Handpicking A 'Superintelligence' Team To Lead Meta's AGI Race After Llama 4 Letdown: Report - Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META)

Meta Platforms Inc. META CEO Mark Zuckerberg, unhappy with the company's setbacks in AI innovation, is reportedly handpicking a new team of top researchers and engineers to work on artificial general intelligence. What Happened: Zuckerberg is personally steering efforts to recruit around 50 experts, a team internally known as the "superintelligence" group, to achieve artificial general intelligence (AGI), the point where machines can match human abilities across tasks, according to a Bloomberg report. His goal is for Meta to overtake its rivals in this race, with plans to integrate AGI into chatbots, smart glasses and other products. Seating plans at Meta's Menlo Park campus have allegedly been redrawn so the new hires can work close to him. Zuckerberg's superintelligence push is closely tied to Meta's planned multi-billion-dollar investment in Scale AI. Once finalized, the deal, which will be Meta's biggest external investment yet, is expected to bring Scale AI founder Alexandr Wang into the new AGI team. See Also: Meta Platforms Enters Its Most Bullish Month: A Return To Record Highs In Sight? Why It Matters: This new hands-on approach to recruiting reportedly originates from disappointment with Llama 4, Meta's latest large language model, which failed to meet his expectations for performance and adoption. These setbacks led Meta to delay its next major release, "Behemoth," amid concerns it featured little improvement over earlier versions. The Llama models are the key to Meta's AI strategy. By open-sourcing Llama, Meta hopes to establish it as a global AI foundation, like how Android became the backbone of mobile software. Last month, several engineers working on Llama reportedly left Meta to join Mistral AI, a Paris-based startup. Price Action: Meta stock is currently trading at $700.02, down -0.34% pre-market. Benzinga Edge scores the stock high on Growth (92.74), Momentum (86.41), and Quality (86.62), but low on Value (27.02). For more details, check out Benzinga Edge rankings. Read Next: Not Gen Z, Meta's Ad Revenue Driven By Gen X With Higher Purchasing Power: Report Photo courtesy: Frederic Legrand - COMEO / Shutterstock.com METAMeta Platforms Inc$699.65-0.39%Stock Score Locked: Edge Members Only Benzinga Rankings give you vital metrics on any stock - anytime. Unlock RankingsEdge RankingsMomentum86.41Growth92.74Quality86.62Value27.02Price TrendShortMediumLongOverviewMarket News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs

Meta taps top researchers from Google and Sesame for new AI lab

Meta has poached top engineers from multiple tech firms, including Google, for a new team focused on achieving a more advanced form of AI called artificial general intelligence. Jack Rae, a principal researcher at Google DeepMind, is expected to join Meta's "superintelligence" team, according to multiple people familiar with the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity as the information is not public. Meta has also recruited Johan Schalkwyk, a machine learning lead at AI voice startup Sesame, other people said. Alexandr Wang, co-founder and chief executive officer of Scale, is also expected to be part of the team after Meta finalizes a multibillion-dollar investment in the data labeling startup that could be announced as soon as this week.

Meta Poaches Top Engineers for AGI Team | PYMNTS.com

Alexandr Wang, co-founder and CEO of Scale AI, and other employees from that company are expected to join the team after Meta finalizes a not-yet-announced multibillion-dollar investment in the firm, the report said, citing unnamed sources. Meta is looking to hire about 50 people for the team, including a chief scientist who will oversee it, according to the report. It was reported Tuesday (June 10) that Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is recruiting from a pool of AI researchers and engineers who have met with him at his homes in Lake Tahoe and Palo Alto in recent weeks. While Zuckerberg has been clear about making AI a priority for Meta, he has reportedly gone into "founder mode," with an increasingly hands-on approach to management. The building of the AGI team is born out of Zuckerberg's frustration with the tech giant's limitations in AI and his goal of turning Meta into a leader in the field of AGI, or machines that can perform tasks at the same level as humans. It was reported Sunday (June 8) that Meta is weighing a multibillion-dollar investment in Scale AI, which offers data labeling services that help businesses train machine learning models. Scale AI was valued at $13.8 billion following a funding round that raised $1 billion in the spring of 2024. Meta was among the investors in that round. The reported investment now being weighed by the company would mark Meta's largest-ever outside expenditure on AI, a rare move for a company that has largely depended on internal research. Zuckerberg said in a January post on Facebook that Meta plans to invest $60 billion to $65 billion in capital expenditures and grow its AI teams "significantly" this year, adding that 2025 will be a "defining year" for AI. "This is a massive effort, and over the coming years it will drive our core products and business, unlock historic innovation, and extend American technology leadership," Zuckerberg said in the post.

Zuckerberg Personally Recruiting Experts for Meta's AGI Effort | PYMNTS.com

By completing this form, you agree to receive marketing communications from PYMNTS and to the sharing of your information with our sponsor, if applicable, in accordance with our Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions. This effort is born out of Zuckerberg's frustration with the tech giant's limitations in artificial intelligence (AI), Bloomberg News reported Tuesday (June 10), citing sources familiar with the matter. According to the report, the CEO is recruiting from a pool of AI researchers and engineers who have met with him at his homes in Lake Tahoe and Palo Alto in recent weeks, with the aim of forming what Meta calls a "superintelligence" group. The sources told Bloomberg that Zuckerberg's goal is to turn Meta into a leader in the field of artificial general intelligence (AGI), or machines that can perform tasks at the same level as humans. Once Meta reaches that point, it could incorporate AGI into everything from its social media platforms to products like its AI-powered Ray-Ban glasses, the report said. PYMNTS has contacted Meta for comment but has not yet gotten a reply. Zuckerberg plans to hire around 50 people for the new team, including a new head of AI research, the report added. While Zuckerberg has been clear about making AI a priority for Meta, sources say he has recently gone into "founder mode," with an increasingly hands-on approach to management. The effort is happening as the company is also -- per an earlier Bloomberg report -- planning a multi-billion dollar investment in Scale AI, which provides data labeling services to help businesses train machine learning models. Writing about AGI earlier this year, PYMNTS noted that the realization of that goal would have major implications for business. For instance, one AI system can analyze market trends while at the same time redesigning the supply chain to respond to those changes, that report argued. The technology could handle customer service while also using those interactions to inform product development. It could manage operations while coming up with innovative solutions to efficiency issues. It can make strategic decisions by synthesizing information from multiple industries and domains, something that requires advanced general reasoning. "However, the challenges are significant as well," the report added. "The development of AGI would necessitate major economic and social changes. Industries could be transformed overnight. Jobs would be created and eliminated at unprecedented rates. Companies would need to completely rethink their organizational structures and business models."

Meta poaches top engineers from Google, others for AGI team - Bloomberg By Investing.com

Investing.com -- Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ:META) has recruited several top engineers from other technology companies to form a new team focused on artificial general intelligence (AGI). Jack Rae, a principal researcher at Google DeepMind, part of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL), is expected to join Meta's "superintelligence" team, according to Bloomberg, citing multiple sources. The social media giant has also hired Johan Schalkwyk, a machine learning lead from voice AI startup Sesame AI Inc., to join the new initiative. Alexandr Wang, co-founder and CEO of Scale AI, is anticipated to become part of the team after Meta completes a multibillion-dollar investment in the data labeling startup. This investment could be announced as early as this week. The new team at Meta aims to develop more advanced artificial intelligence capabilities beyond current technologies, moving toward what experts call artificial general intelligence.

Meta's Zuckerberg hiring for new 'superintelligence' AI team, Bloomberg News reports

(Reuters) -Mark Zuckerberg, the billionaire CEO of Meta Platforms is setting up a team of experts to achieve so-called "artificial general intelligence" (AGI), or machines that can match or surpass human capabilities, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday. Zuckerberg is building the new AI team in tandem with a reported investment of over $10 billion in Scale AI, Bloomberg News said citing sources, adding that Scale AI founder Alexandr Wang was expected to join the AGI group after a deal is done. Reuters could not immediately verify the Bloomberg report. Meta did not immediately respond to a request for comment outside regular business hours. Zuckerberg's plans to personally recruit around 50 people, including a new head of AI research for the AGI team is driven partly by frustration over the performance and reception of Meta's latest large language model, Llama 4, Bloomberg News reported. Last month, Meta delayed the release of its flagship "Behemoth" AI model due to concerns about its capabilities, the Wall Street Journal reported. Rivals like OpenAI have also been looking to make changes to attract further investment in a bid to develop AGI. (Reporting by Gursimran Kaur in Bengaluru; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee)