AI Talent War: Meta, OpenAI Clash Over 100M USD Bonus Claims

The competition for top AI talent is getting heated, and a recent clash between industry giants has brought the issue into the spotlight. Lucas Beyer, a former OpenAI researcher who recently jumped ship to Meta, has publicly disputed claims by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman that Meta was offering jaw-dropping $100 million signing bonuses to poach talent. In a post on X, Beyer bluntly called the claim “fake news,” setting off a firestorm in the tech world.

• Meta vs. OpenAI: Lucas Beyer Denies $100M Bonus Claim Amid AI Talent War
• AI Talent Battle Heats Up as Meta Snags OpenAI Researchers, Sparks Industry Clash
• Sam Altman’s $100M Bonus Claim Debunked by Ex-OpenAI Staffer Amid Meta Poaching Row

Beyer, along with colleagues Alexander Kolesnikov and Xiaohua Zhai, left OpenAI to join Meta’s team focused on building superintelligent AI. The trio, who previously worked at Google DeepMind, are now helping Meta advance its AI efforts, particularly with its Llama AI models. Altman, during a podcast with his brother Jack, suggested Meta was throwing around massive nine-figure bonuses to lure OpenAI’s talent. But Meta’s Chief Technology Officer, Andrew Bosworth, fired back, calling Altman “dishonest” and clarifying that such huge payouts are rare and reserved for top executives, not typical hires.

The back-and-forth reveals the intense rivalry between Meta and OpenAI as they race to lead the AI revolution, particularly in the quest for artificial general intelligence (AGI). Meta’s CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, has been aggressively recruiting talent, with other OpenAI researchers like Trapit Bansal also joining Meta’s ranks. This talent drain has rattled OpenAI’s leadership. In an internal memo, OpenAI’s Chief Research Officer, Mark Chen, described the departures as feeling like a “personal betrayal” and promised to rethink compensation to keep staff from jumping ship.

Also Read: OpenAI Might Add Ads to ChatGPT as Costs Rise, Says CEO Sam Altman

Despite Altman’s earlier claim that OpenAI hadn’t lost any of its top talent, the recent exits tell a different story. As Meta and OpenAI battle for supremacy in AI, this public spat highlights the high stakes and fierce competition driving the industry forward. With both companies vying for the best minds in AI, the fight for talent is only getting fiercer.