Meta Poaches Apple’s AI Chief in Power Move as Superintelligence Labs Builds Dream Team

Big Tech's AI arms race just got hotter—and Zuckerberg isn't playing nice.

Meta's latest hire signals an all-out talent war. The social media giant just snagged Apple's top AI exec, adding firepower to its Superintelligence Labs division. Because when you're burning $10B+ quarterly on the metaverse, why not throw another genius on the pyre?

Wall Street yawns as tech titans reshuffle deck chairs. Meanwhile, somewhere in Silicon Valley, a VC just minted another 'AI infrastructure' startup.

TLDRs;

• Meta hires Apple’s AI chief Ruoming Pang to strengthen its Superintelligence Labs division.
• Pang joins Meta with a reported multi-million-dollar pay package.
• The move follows a string of high-profile hires and ongoing recruitment struggles.
• Meta’s compensation-heavy strategy contrasts with competitors’ culture-driven models.

Meta has hired Ruoming Pang, the former head of Apple’s AI division, to play a central role in building out its newly established Superintelligence Labs.

The hire marks another major step in Meta’s attempt to secure a foothold in the race for artificial general intelligence and compete with rivals like OpenAI, Google DeepMind, and Anthropic. Pang, who previously led Apple’s Foundation Models team, is joining the company with a compensation package rumored to be in the multi-million-dollar range.

His addition is one of several top-tier hires aimed at repositioning Meta as a serious contender in the field of advanced AI research and product development.

Alongside Pang, Meta has brought on former Scale AI CEO Alexandr Wang to serve as chief AI officer, with former GitHub CEO Nat Friedman overseeing applied research and AI integration across products. Despite these moves, Meta’s hiring spree has not been without friction.

Llama 4 challenges prompt recruitment shift

The new hires follow a lukewarm reception to Meta’s open-source Llama 4 model earlier this year. While Llama has garnered praise in the research community for its accessibility, the fourth iteration failed to generate the kind of enthusiasm Meta had anticipated.

Adding to the challenges, several high-level researchers recently exited the company, prompting CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s team to rethink its recruitment and organizational strategy.

In an attempt to quickly fill gaps, Meta reportedly offered staggering compensation packages, up to $100 million in bonuses, to top talent at OpenAI. However, according to OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, none of their top researchers accepted the offer. The rejection raised questions about whether money alone can win the AI talent war.

Meta’s pay-to-play strategy faces resistance

Meta’s approach, heavily reliant on outsized financial offers, stands in contrast to rivals like Anthropic and Google DeepMind, which have focused more on mission-driven cultures and flat organizational structures.

According to reports, many engineers now prioritize environments that offer creative freedom and ethical direction over sheer monetary gain. Anthropic, for example, has seen higher retention rates by promoting a more purpose-driven work environment and equal standing among technical staff.

This trend has left Meta in a difficult position. While the company can outspend most of its competitors, it continues to face resistance from researchers who value long-term impact over short-term financial rewards. Consequently, Meta has been forced to widen its talent pool, drawing from across the tech industry rather than depending on a few key acquisitions.

Superintelligence Labs prepares for high-stakes future

Despite these hurdles, Meta’s recruitment of high-profile names like Ruoming Pang and Daniel Gross, formerly of SAFE Superintelligence, signals its intent to stay in the AI race for the long haul. The company has also added other leading researchers to the roster, hoping that its scale and resources will eventually tip the balance in its favor.

As the industry moves toward more mature, large-scale AI models, the ability to attract and retain visionary talent may prove just as important as the models themselves.

Meta’s Superintelligence Labs, now helmed by a reshuffled leadership team, is gearing up for what looks to be a critical phase in the future of AI development. Whether its strategy will prove sustainable in the face of mounting cultural headwinds remains to be seen.