Key Defectors from OpenAI:
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Shengjia Zhao
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Shuchao Bi
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Jiahui Yu
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Hongyu Ren
Altman’s Criticism:
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Called Meta’s actions “distasteful.”
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Downplayed the talent loss, saying Meta “didn’t get their top people.”
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Warned about the toxic culture of AI Twitter and Meta’s “mercenary” attitude.
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Stressed OpenAI’s mission-driven ethos: “Missionaries will beat mercenaries.”
Meta’s Strategy and Offers:
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Meta reportedly made lavish offers, with some exceeding $100 million in first-year compensation, and up to $300 million over four years.
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Offers included stock options with immediate vesting, appealing in Silicon Valley.
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Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth said only a few top-level roles received such high offers, calling the numbers “exaggerated.”
OpenAI’s Internal Response:
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Chief Research Officer Mark Chen said it felt like someone “broke into our home.”
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Altman promised to review compensation across OpenAI.
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He claimed OpenAI stock has more upside than Meta stock and rewards should reflect long-term contributions.
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OpenAI employees expressed loyalty, calling the company a “magical cradle of innovation.”
Meta’s Position:
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Meta fired back, with Bosworth stating: “We are succeeding at getting talent from OpenAI.”
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Mark Zuckerberg affirmed Meta’s strong commitment to AGI and said MSL will advance Meta’s role in the AI race, where it currently lags behind OpenAI and Google.
