Inside Meta's Top-Secret Project: Zuckerberg's AI Dream Team

Mark Zuckerberg personally hiring engineers to build superintelligent AI

StoryMeta finds itself somewhat behind in the ongoing AI race in Silicon Valley, with competitors like Google and OpenAI dominating the market. This situation has put pressure on the company prompting Meta CEO, Mark Zuckerberg to take matters into his own hands. Zuckerberg is leading the recruitment of a hand-picked team of elite engineers and researchers to build what he envisions as superintelligent AI.

According to The New York Times, Zuckerberg is not only investing billions but is also actively involved in meeting potential recruits at his own homes. He is even rearranging Meta's office layouts to bring the team closer to him. The CEO is offering jaw-dropping compensation packages that reportedly reach into nine figures, which is approximately $100 million (over Rs 800 crore) in US dollars.

Push towards superintelligence

Meta's push to build superintelligence is closely linked to its pending multi-billion dollar investment in Scale AI, a data-labelling firm led by Alexandr Wang. As part of the deal, Wang, a 28-year-old, is expected to join Meta and assist in building the new lab. The company is not only investing billions but is also successfully luring researchers away from industry leaders like OpenAI and Google with lucrative offers ranging from seven to nine figures. Some of the approached researchers have already agreed to join Meta.

Reportedly, Meta's AI division has undergone a significant internal shake-up following a series of failures and internal conflicts. Despite being a leader in AI research and establishing its first AI lab in 2013, the company has faced challenges such as losing key employees and scrutiny for overhyping benchmarks and releasing underperforming models.

Focus on artificial general intelligence

Zuckerberg's frustration with recent AI shortcomings, particularly after internal dissatisfaction over Llama 4's performance and the delayed release of the ambitious Behemoth model, has led to his aggressive involvement in the team-building process for Meta's new division named the Superintelligence Group.

The primary goal of this new division is to create artificial general intelligence (AGI), machines capable of performing at or above human cognitive levels. The aim is to integrate this power across Meta's ecosystem, from chatbots to smart glasses. The group is expected to consist of approximately 50 elite members, with Zuckerberg personally spearheading the hiring process, including the launch of a dedicated WhatsApp chat called "Recruiting Party" to attract top-tier talent.

While AGI remains a speculative target for many companies without a clear roadmap to guaranteed success, Zuckerberg believes Meta should lead the charge. He has expressed his determination to set the course for the future this year, one handpicked engineer at a time.