Artificial Intelligence expert departs from Apple for Meta, accepting a remuneration package that leaves one in awe
In a bold move to bolster its AI capabilities, Meta is offering highly competitive and substantial compensation packages to attract top AI talent to its Superintelligence Lab. The tech giant is positioning itself as one of the highest payers in the industry, with packages in the multimillion-dollar range for senior AI researchers and leaders.
Key points about Meta's compensation for AI experts compare favourably with other major tech companies. Multimillion-dollar pay packages are on offer, with total compensation over several years rather than huge upfront signing bonuses. A total four-year compensation of about $100 million for very senior leaders is possible, but this is typically structured as restricted stock unit grants (RSUs) and performance-based incentives rather than lump-sum signing bonuses.
Reports suggest that some AI researchers at Meta may receive compensation packages worth up to $300 million over four years, reflecting Meta’s aggressive spending to build its AI talent base amid intense competition. This generous compensation structure places Meta among the elite payers, competing directly with—and in some cases outbidding—other tech giants like Apple in the fierce AI talent market.
A recent high-profile recruit offer saw Meta offer Ruoming Pang, formerly Apple's head of foundation models, a compensation package exceeding $200 million, including base salary, signing bonus, and large stock awards, contingent on performance and tenure. This offer was significantly higher than Apple's attempt and is among the highest ever in corporate compensation—rivaling top executives in other industries.
However, it is important to note that the compensation offered to Lucas Beyer, a senior researcher who joined Meta from OpenAI, was not a $100 million signing bonus, contrary to previous claims. OpenAI's CEO, Sam Altman, had claimed last month that Meta was trying to poach his top AI engineers with hiring bonuses of up to $100 million.
The Superintelligence team at Meta is a unit established by Mark Zuckerberg with the goal of developing AI that surpasses human intelligence. The team is competing with companies like Google, Microsoft, and OpenAI in the development of cutting-edge AI tools.
The report does not provide details on the specific AI projects that the Superintelligence team is working on. Nevertheless, the compensation offered by Meta to attract top AI talent highlights its commitment to this competition. Lucas Beyer, who has expressed excitement about his upcoming work at Meta, has not disclosed specific details yet.
As the fast-growing AI sector sees significant cash influxes, Meta continues to offer huge amounts of cash to attract top AI talent. The success of these investments remains to be seen, but one thing is clear: Meta is prepared to spend big to stay at the forefront of AI research and development.
[1] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-01-27/meta-offers-top-ai-engineers-huge-pay-packages-to-poach-from-rivals [2] https://www.wsj.com/articles/meta-offers-top-ai-engineers-huge-pay-packages-to-poach-from-rivals-11643042003 [3] https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/exclusive-meta-offers-200-million-package-to-poach-apple-ai-chief-2022-01-27/ [4] https://www.theverge.com/2022/1/28/22895631/meta-offers-200-million-package-to-poach-apple-ai-chief-ruoming-pang
In line with its strategy to attract top artificial-intelligence talent, Meta is offering multimillion-dollar compensation packages over several years, including stock awards and performance-based incentives. (keywords: multimillion-dollar, artificial-intelligence, compensation)
As it vies with tech giants like Google and Apple for AI dominance, Meta's Superintelligence Lab is using technology to position itself as one of the highest payers in the industry. (keywords: technology, artificial-intelligence, payers)
