Meta sets up Al superintelligence lab

Zuckerberg signs up Scale AI chief Wang

- CADE METZ MIKE ISAAC

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 chief executive of the AI start-up 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 employees to the company. Meta has offered sevento 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 reorganisation 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 chief executive, 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. Mr Zuckerberg has pushed his company to incorporate Al 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 start-ups and their own AI labs. Microsoft has invested more than $13 billion in OpenAI, while Amazon has ploughed $8 billion into the Al startup Anthropic.

The behemoths have also spent billions to hire employees from highprofile start-ups and license their