Advertising
From Pink Slips to Silent Sidelining: Inside adland’s layoff and anxiety crisis

Meta Platforms is reportedly in advanced talks to inject over $10 billion into Scale AI, a startup specializing in data labeling for artificial intelligence, as per reports. This potential investment would mark Meta's largest external AI funding to date and stands to be one of the most significant private funding rounds in the history of the burgeoning AI sector. While terms are still under negotiation, the move signals a strategic shift for Meta, which has traditionally focused on in-house AI development and open-source models.
Founded in 2016 by CEO Alexandr Wang, Scale AI has witnessed explosive growth, generating approximately $870 million in revenue in 2024 and projecting to more than double that figure to $2 billion in 2025. The company was valued at $13.8 billion as of May 2024, following a $1 billion Series F funding round that saw participation from tech giants like Amazon, Meta, and Nvidia.
This investment aligns with Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg's stated commitment to making AI a core priority, with plans to allocate up to $65 billion for AI-related projects in 2025. The collaboration could significantly accelerate AI technology development across various sectors, including national security, and reshape the competitive landscape within the industry, mirroring similar substantial investments by Microsoft in OpenAI and Amazon in Anthropic.
From purpose-driven work and narrative-rich brand films to AI-enabled ideas and creator-led collaborations, the awards reflect the full spectrum of modern creativity.
Read MoreLooking ahead to the close of 2025 and into 2026, Sorrell sees technology platforms as the clear winners. He described them as “nation states in their own right”, with market capitalisations that exceed the GDPs of many countries.