Apple Loses AI Talent to Meta and Google Amid Internal Turbulence
Apple's artificial intelligence division faces significant talent drain as four researchers defect to rivals Meta and Google. Yang departed to launch a startup, while You and Bailin Wang joined Meta—You working on Superintelligence research and Wang on recommendation systems. Zurui Wang moved to Google DeepMind, which collaborates with Apple on core AI models for upcoming features, including an enhanced Siri voice assistant slated for late 2024.
The exodus highlights Apple's struggles in the AI race, compounded by outsourcing key technology to Alphabet's Google—a decision that reportedly angered staff. Senior executive Stuart Bowers, previously leading Apple's abandoned self-driving car project, also exited for Google after overseeing Siri development.
