Meta Continues AI Talent Acquisition with Apple Researcher Hire

Meta Platforms has hired Bowen Zhang, a multimodal AI researcher from Apple, to join its Superintelligence Labs team. Zhang will work on developing advanced AI systems that can achieve artificial general intelligence. Meta has also attracted researchers from rivals such as OpenAI, Google DeepMind, and Anthropic. Analysts have a Strong Buy consensus rating on META stock with a target price of $761.55, implying 7.8% upside potential.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) has continued to bolster its Superintelligence Labs team by hiring Bowen Zhang, a multimodal AI researcher from Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL). Zhang joins Meta's team to work on developing advanced AI systems that aim to achieve artificial general intelligence [1]. This move follows Meta's recent acquisition of key AI talent from competitors like OpenAI, Google DeepMind, and Anthropic.

The addition of Zhang, who was part of Apple's foundation models group (AFM), highlights Meta's aggressive strategy to attract top AI talent. Apple has lost several key researchers to Meta in recent months, including Ruoming Pang, Tom Gunter, and Mark Lee, all of whom were instrumental in Apple's AI efforts [2].

The hiring spree comes as Meta continues to invest heavily in AI to strengthen its advertising business and improve user engagement. Analysts have a strong consensus rating on META stock, with a target price of $761.55, implying a 7.8% upside potential [3]. This optimism is driven by Meta's ongoing AI innovations and the company's growing market share in the digital ad spending sector.

Despite the positive outlook, Apple has been facing internal challenges due to the departures and the uncertainty surrounding its AI strategy. The company is considering using third-party AI models for its Siri voice assistant, which has raised concerns among Apple's AI team [2]. However, Apple executives have reassured the team that in-house model development remains a priority.

Meta's aggressive hiring strategy and AI investments are expected to drive growth in the coming years. Analysts predict Meta's earnings to grow at 15% annually in the next three years, making its current valuation of 28 times earnings look reasonable [3]. The company's recent announcements of new AI features, such as personalizing ads and embedding conversational AI agents, further underscore its commitment to innovation.

References:
[1] https://seekingalpha.com/news/4473705-meta-continues-to-stack-its-superintelligence-labs-as-it-snags-multimodal-expert-from-apple-report
[2] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-07-29/apple-loses-ai-models-engineer-bowen-zhang-to-meta-superintelligence-team
[3] https://www.fool.com/investing/2025/07/29/buy-meta-platforms-stock-july-30-wall-street-answe/