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17h ago

Meta Entices Apple’s AI Models Head With Over $200 Million Pay Package

Meta’s unprecedented $200 million package for Apple’s AI lead highlights an aggressive talent strategy, raising questions about its long-term impact.

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Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is luring top AI talent with hefty offers.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman looks set to challenge Meta's poaching tactics.

Overview

  • Meta’s Superintelligence Labs offered Ruoming Pang more than $200 million in combined salary, signing bonus, and vesting equity to join its AI models team.
  • Apple declined to match the offer and promoted Zhifeng Chen to head its Foundation Models group, reshaping its internal AI leadership.
  • The deal builds on Meta’s $14.3 billion investment in ScaleAI and its launch of Superintelligence Labs to compete for artificial general intelligence talent.
  • LinkedIn cofounder Reid Hoffman defended mega compensation as economically rational, while OpenAI CEO Sam Altman warned of potential cultural risks.
  • OpenAI has countered by hiring four senior engineers from Tesla, xAI, and Meta and is reportedly recalibrating researcher pay to remain competitive.