Apple Continues Losing AI Experts to Meta

[MacRumors]

A fourth Apple artificial intelligence expert has left the company to join Meta, reports Bloomberg. Bowen Zhang, who was on Apple's foundation models team, is the latest employee to abandon Apple for Meta.

The leader of Apple's foundation models group, Ruoming Pang, was one of the first Apple AI researchers to join Meta. Since then, several employees who worked under him have also left for Meta. Meta is aggressively hiring for its Superintelligence Labs, an AI division that's building advanced AI systems capable of performing at or beyond human-level intelligence.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has been offering AI engineers massive compensation packages to lure them from other companies, and Pang reportedly received over $200 million. Pay from Meta reportedly includes a high base salary, a signing bonus, and stock awards, and the money offered to Pang exceeds the compensation of almost all Apple employees except for executives. Presumably, the other AI engineers that left Apple have also received offers that Apple isn't willing to match.

Last month, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said that Meta had been offering signing bonuses as high as $100 million. Meta has hired engineers and AI experts from Apple, OpenAI, and Anthropic. Bloomberg says Apple is "marginally increasing" the pay of its foundation models team, but is not paying at the level that Meta is.

With Apple losing key employees to Meta, it could continue to struggle to catch up in the AI race. Competitors like Google and Samsung have much more advanced AI features already, and this year, Apple was forced to delay promised Apple Intelligence Siri features until 2026.

Apple has been restructuring its AI teams, with AI efforts now overseen by Apple software chief Craig Federighi and Mike Rockwell, who led Apple Vision Pro development. Rumors suggest that Apple is considering using technology from Anthropic or OpenAI for future AI features, including an LLM version of Siri, rather than its own models.

Apple's discussions to rely on third-party AI technology have reportedly led to falling morale on the foundation models team that is now losing employees to Meta. Multiple engineers are reportedly actively interviewing for jobs at other AI companies, while Apple executives are aiming to reassure team members that it remains committed to in-house AI development.

Article Link: Apple Continues Losing AI Experts to Meta

 

[I7guy]

It's hard to turn down that type of money. If you are an AI expert you get the goodies. Hopefully Apple rethinks it's compensation position.

 

[CapitalIdea]

If meta wants to offer these people in excess of $100m EACH, Apple would be foolish to even try to counter it. Let meta do a lot of the sloppy early work, and then when it becomes a commodity (which it will) just contract for it on the cheap. In the meantime, just partner with Perplexity or someone.

 

[smulji]

On the one hand, the defections shouldn't be dismissed, on the other hand,

https://twitter.com/x/status/1950278281204527604

 

[breenmask]

Apple had AI experts?

 

[Shirasaki]

On the one hand, the defections shouldn't be dismissed, on the other hand,

https://twitter.com/x/status/1950278281204527604

So that guy thinks Apple losing those talents are of no consequences? Because what Apple wants to do has nothing in common with their AI expertise? In other world, Apple is not focusing on big AI stuff but small AI applications?

 

[@Brett]

Apple may have well gotten what it needed from these people. But also if they want to work at Meta maybe they are not a good fit for Apple. Let Meta Google and Ms throw billions at an industry that may never see the ROI.

 

[BornAgainMac]

Apple can use AI to replace those AI employees.

 

[smulji]

So that guy thinks Apple losing those talents are of no consequences? Because what Apple wants to do has nothing in common with their AI expertise? In other world, Apple is not focusing on big AI stuff but small AI applications?

pretty much

 

[jz0309]

It's hard to turn down that type of money. If you are an AI expert you get the goodies. Hopefully Apple rethinks it's compensation position.

Well, how do you think the "average" FB employee feels about people being hired for that amount of money that is thrown around here? Or say, a director that has been at FB for years is now getting a peer that allegedly make 50 times what he/she makes?
What Zuck is doing is very dangerous ground for employee satisfaction imho ...
So I'm not sure how Apple really should respond/react here tbh

 

[iVoid]

Didn't Apple kind of blow it on their first attempt at AI?
Why go after Apple AI people who were part of that? 😀

 

[HDJulie]

Holy ****, I need to go learn AI

 

[unchecked]

Gotta earn the money before the bubble pops.

 

[Lioness~]

Apple had AI experts?

Apple is not on the AI race wit Siri, at all.
Timmy is sleeping.
While Sam Altman, Meta etc is driving the AI Porche.

 

[roklanhavok]

I've said it before and I'll say it again: Meta is being dumb here. Soon AI development is going to become commonplace and everyone will know how to do it. Also, Meta could have the best AI available but people won't use it because Meta is horrible. This is the biggest waste of money ever.

 

[Biro]

Rumors suggest that Apple is considering using technology from Anthropic or OpenAI for future AI features, including an LLM version of ‌Siri‌, rather than its own models.

And, frankly, I can’t imagine any other outcome - at least not with the information we now have. If I was a AI engineer at Apple, I would have been out of there long ago. I still have AI and Siri turned off on all of my devices. I don’t expect that to change anytime soon.

 

[nfl46]

Apple had AI experts?

Lol. I think we all are shocked.

 

[DelayedGratificationGene]

So is Meta going to start being behind Ai because they now have Apple AI employees?

 

[novagamer]

Apple painted themselves into a moral corner.

There is no way an Apple-branded LLM wouldn’t be scrutinized and sensationalized for years because there is no way to red team it enough where it would never, ever cross a line that painted the company in questionable light.

Apple should do whatever it takes to acquire Antrhopic, keep them as a subsidiary, and integrate in a first-class way with their software and build hardware to run it.

Move the best ML / AI folks over to that subsidiary, and also use the margins to subsidize Anthropic so more usage can be bundled with a high-tier services plan which Apple loves.

At this point it’s kind of evident that Zuckerberg is not only paying for talent, he’s also paying to cripple his competitors. Apple is being way too blasé about this.

 

[GrassShark]

Apple is not on the AI race wit Siri, at all.
Timmy is sleeping.
While Sam Altman, Meta etc is driving the AI Porche.

The AI Porsche:

 

[ThailandToo]

It's hard to turn down that type of money. If you are an AI expert you get the goodies. Hopefully Apple rethinks it's compensation position.

This is the problem, Tim Crook doesn’t make good decisions when it comes to these things as he has zero clue about how important AI and even Siri are. Apple has dropped the ball. AI is in a gold rush stage right now, and Apple needs to compensate the professionals very well. The whole thing of giving money only to the executive team and screwing everyone else who isn’t a shareholder isn’t going to work long term. People will leave and use their expertise and innovation elsewhere. Wish Apple would let Crook go and get a product person CEO who understands why and who is important. Every employee at AAPL who isn’t an executive is getting taken big time. Apple doesn’t care about anyone except the shareholders and executives. It’s a sad way to treat people.

 

[ThailandToo]

So is Meta going to start being behind Ai now because they now have Apple AI employees?lol

I think Apple’s woes are at the top in failure to understand and prioritize the strategic things that matter. $20B spent on an Apple Car and how many billions spent on Vision Pro when that’s not even a mass-market ready product. Vision Pro has a use in the future but not when you have to strap three pounds to your face and cramp your neck. Siri should be ahead of the competition, instead Crook let it fail. Apple Intelligence is becoming a meme and ruining the brand of Apple. Sad state of affairs. As long as the investors win, the Board will allow Crook to keep ruining the company. At some point they will have ruined all their goodwill and will fall like Nokia or Blackberry. AI is the next thing whether people at first like it or not. It does represent change and is a threat to many people’s jobs. People need to adapt and learn to use it or get completely destroyed by it. Chose use it over lose everything.

 

[GrassShark]

This is the problem, Tim Crook doesn’t make good decisions when it comes to these things as he has zero clue about how important AI and even Siri are. Apple has dropped the ball. AI is in a gold rush stage right now, and Apple needs to compensate the professionals very well. The whole thing of giving money only to the executive team and screwing everyone else who isn’t a shareholder isn’t going to work long term. People will leave and use their expertise and innovation elsewhere. Wish Apple would let Crook go and get a product person CEO who understands why and who is important. Every employee at AAPL who isn’t an executive is getting taken big time. Apple doesn’t care about anyone except the shareholders and executives. It’s a sad way to treat people.

Dude, even Tim Cook isn't getting paid what Meta is paying these people. Apple may underpay, but what Meta is doing is stupid and unsustainable.

Also, let's not forget the tens of thousands of tech workers these companies have laid off over the last 5-or-so years.

If these people can snatch up these multi-multi-million dollar positions, they should do it, but don't expect it to last long. The bubble pop is coming.

 

[Lioness~]

The AI Porsche:

Looks horrible - Porsche wont make that crap.

 

[F-Trunks]

Apple AI experts is about as big of an oxymoron as Government Intelligence.