Meta hires three OpenAI researchers for new 'superintelligence' team: Report

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has poached three high-profile researchers from OpenAI's Zurich office to join his newly formed "superintelligence" team, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.

The hires - Lucas Beyer, Alexander Kolesnikov, and Xiaohua Zhai - mark a significant escalation in the ongoing AI talent war, particularly between Meta and OpenAI.

Also Read: Sam Altman alleges Mark Zuckerberg is offering $100 million to lure OpenAI talent

The move comes just days after OpenAI chief Sam Altman publicly accused Zuckerberg's company of offering up to $100 million in bonuses to lure away his employees.

In a statement last week, Altman said, "I've heard Meta thinks of us as their biggest competitor," highlighting the intensifying rivalry between the two AI powerhouses.

An OpenAI spokesperson confirmed the trio's departure but declined to comment on the reasons. Meta has no responded to media queries regarding the hires, as of this report.

Also Read: Meta's Zuckerberg aims to revolutionize AI with 'Superintelligence group', to hire 50 experts

The talent grab adds to Meta's growing push into frontier AI. The company recently brought on board Alexandr Wang, the 28-year-old CEO of Scale AI, to contribute to its superintelligence mission.

In addition to hiring Wang, Meta has also taken a 49% stake in his company for a reported $14.3 billion - further signalling Zuckerberg's all-in approach to artificial general intelligence (AGI).

Also Read: Scale AI's Alexandr Wang to join Meta's superintelligence mission; Jason Dorege to be interim CEO of startup