OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has disclosed that Meta, the parent company of Facebook, made lavish offers to lure key members of his team but none of the top talent accepted.
According to Altman, Meta dangled nine-figure bonuses and annual salaries to attract OpenAI engineers and researchers, hoping to bolster its position in the competitive AI race.
Speaking on the “Uncapped with Jack Altman” podcast hosted by his brother, Altman described Meta’s recruitment strategy as aggressive and cash-heavy.
“They offered a lot of people on our team \$100 million-plus compensation packages,” he said, adding, “It’s crazy. I’m really happy that at least so far none of our best people have decided to take them up on that.”
Meta has not yet issued a public response to the claims, but the offers reflect the company’s high-stakes push to gain ground in generative AI. Under CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Meta has committed to investing \$60 billion in artificial intelligence this year alone.
That includes a recent deal, reportedly worth over \$10 billion, with Scale AI, a data-labeling company whose CEO Alexandr Wang is now set to join Meta’s superintelligence efforts.
While acknowledging Meta’s technological prowess, Altman questioned its culture of innovation, arguing that throwing money at talent doesn’t guarantee long-term success.
“I think OpenAI has a much better shot at delivering on superintelligence,” he added that the strategy of offering a ton of upfront guaranteed comp doesn’t foster a strong or innovative culture.
