Meta Offers 100 Million Dollar Signing Bonuses to Lure OpenAI Talent

OpenAI's Chief Executive Officer disclosed that Meta had attempted to attract employees from the ChatGPT development team by offering a signing bonus of up to 100 million dollars, along with an even higher annual salary package. This revelation came during a podcast hosted by the CEO's brother. The CEO expressed surprise at the aggressive recruitment tactics employed by Meta, describing the offer as "crazy." Despite Meta's efforts, the CEO stated that OpenAI's top talent had not accepted the offers, preferring to stay with the company due to its mission and potential for long-term value.

The CEO also mentioned that Meta's Chief Executive Officer was personally involved in building a top-tier AI team for the company's "superintelligence" AI lab. Meta has invested heavily in its AI research division, which oversees the development of open-source large language models like the LLaMA series. The CEO of OpenAI acknowledged Meta's proactive approach to innovation but questioned the company's ability to foster a culture of creativity through such high financial incentives.

The intense competition for AI talent has led to significant efforts by tech giants to attract top researchers. The CEO of Databricks' AI division noted that there are fewer than 1,000 researchers capable of building cutting-edge AI models, likening the search for such talent to finding a superstar athlete. The CEO of Perplexity, an AI search startup, highlighted the need for companies to offer substantial incentives and immediate access to computational resources to attract AI talent.

The CEO of OpenAI also commented on the potential impact of Meta's recruitment strategies on company culture. The CEO suggested that offering guaranteed high salaries might shift employees' focus away from the mission and towards financial rewards, which could hinder the development of a strong company culture. Despite this, the CEO expressed respect for Meta's efforts in the AI field and acknowledged the company's proactive approach to innovation.