Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is reportedly offering individual compensation packages of up to USD 100 million (approximately Rs 860 crore) to top AI researchers, scientists, and founders —a move that has stunned Silicon Valley and the AI world. As per the report by The Wall Street Journal, Zuckerberg is personally messaging experts as he builds his ambitious new Superintelligence lab at Meta.
Hands-on CEO: Zuckerberg’s direct outreach strategy
Unlike typical executive roles, Zuckerberg is not delegating this task to HR. He is said to be emailing and messaging top minds himself. Many recipients were initially sceptical, thinking it was a hoax or spam. Some experts even ignored the messages, assuming it could not be the Meta boss.
Zuckerberg reportedly stays involved throughout the hiring journey, from introductory emails to hosting potential recruits at his luxury homes in Palo Alto and Lake Tahoe. He’s even been involved in seating arrangements for those who join his team.
Massive investments and global poaching
Beyond massive pay packages, Meta has also made significant investments. Zuckerberg has spent USD 14 billion for a stake in AI startup Scale AI, with its CEO Alexandr Wang, just 28 years old, expected to lead Meta’s new AI push. Wang is now among the highest-paid tech hires in history.
Zuckerberg has also reached out to Aravind Srinivas, an Indian-origin co-founder of Perplexity, an emerging AI search engine. Reports suggest he even offered to buy out Perplexity, though no deal has been confirmed.
Additionally, Meta has tried to lure top employees from OpenAI, including co-founder Ilya Sutskever. However, OpenAI’s Sam Altman said none of his core team members have left to join Meta.
Ambition meets skepticism
While Zuckerberg's “Superintelligence” project sounds ambitious, some experts have declined offers, citing a lack of clarity in the vision and execution plan. The idea of hiring 50 top AI minds has been met with skepticism by those who demand a more defined strategy.
Nevertheless, Meta’s aggressive recruitment strategy signals a new phase in the AI talent war, where big tech companies are willing to spend unprecedented sums to dominate the next era of computing.
