Meta has intensified its aggressive AI talent acquisition strategy by securing two more top researchers from OpenAI, Jason Wei and Hyung Won Chung. Both scientists, who previously transitioned from Google Brain to OpenAI in 2023, have now joined Meta’s newly launched Superintelligence Lab. Their expertise spans reinforcement learning, model training, and agent-based systems, marking a significant shift in the AI research landscape.
Jason Wei, who worked on the foundational reinforcement learning systems behind OpenAI’s o3 and Deep Research models, has already deactivated his OpenAI credentials. Hyung Won Chung, recognized for his contributions to reasoning models and agent-based AI, is following suit. The duo’s history of close collaboration at Google and OpenAI highlights Meta’s focused effort to acquire cohesive research teams rather than isolated talent.
Meta’s compensation offers—reportedly up to $300 million over four years per researcher—include a mix of salary, stock incentives, and performance bonuses. This recruiting drive is part of CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s broader AGI ambition, spearheaded by the Superintelligence Lab, launched in June 2025. Co-headed by AI industry leaders Alexandr Wang and Nat Friedman, the lab aims to create human-level intelligence systems that can think, learn, and decide autonomously.
The talent battle has prompted strong reactions from OpenAI. CEO Sam Altman publicly criticized Meta’s approach, confirming that such high-stakes poaching has led OpenAI to introduce a $500 million retention initiative. This includes accelerated equity vesting, substantial raises, and sabbatical opportunities to retain core research talent and prevent further losses.
This growing AI arms race underscores a shift in the industry’s power dynamics—from protecting intellectual property to securing intellectual capital. Researchers are increasingly viewed as high-value assets akin to sports franchise players. As Meta draws top minds from rivals like OpenAI, Apple, and Google DeepMind, the fight for elite AI talent is reshaping the future of artificial intelligence development worldwide.
Source: Techeconomy