Meta hires top AI talent in aggressive push

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is doubling down on artificial intelligence with aggressive hiring of new talent and a record investment.

After Meta’s $14.3 billion investment in Scale AI last week—which secured a 49% stake and brought founder Alexandr Wang aboard—Zuckerberg has now recruited Daniel Gross and Nat Friedman.

The duo, co-founders of venture firm NFDG, will work under Wang at Meta. Meta also gains a stake in NFDG, which has backed major AI firms like Perplexity, CoreWeave, and Character.AI.

Failed acquisition sparks bold pivot
Zuckerberg’s latest move follows Meta’s unsuccessful attempt to buy Safe Superintelligence, a $32 billion startup founded by Gross and ex-OpenAI chief scientist Ilya Sutskever. 

Sutskever turned down both the acquisition and an individual hiring offer. Meta quickly pivoted to negotiating with Gross and Friedman, ultimately securing their expertise.

Inside Meta’s talent grab
Meta’s hires highlight an escalating AI talent war. The company has reportedly offered $100 million signing bonuses to lure top minds.

In parallel, OpenAI spent $6.5 billion hiring Jony Ive and acquiring his startup io.