admin In a major shake-up in the artificial intelligence (AI) industry, Ilya Sutskever has officially taken the helm of Safe Superintelligence (SSI) the AI startup he co-founded last year after the sudden departure of CEO Daniel Gross to Meta Platforms. This high-profile move intensifies the ongoing talent war among tech giants, as they race to dominate the next era of AI.
Gross has joined Meta to lead its AI products division, according to sources familiar with the development. His exit from SSI marks another strategic acquisition by Meta, which has been aggressively targeting top AI talent with multi-million-dollar offers and strategic investments.
Sutskever, who co-founded OpenAI and played a central role in shaping modern AI research, confirmed the transition on X. He emphasized SSI’s commitment to staying independent despite mounting interest from major players. “You might have heard rumors of companies looking to acquire us. We are flattered by their attention but are focused on seeing our work through,” he posted.
Founded in 2023, Safe Superintelligence raised $1 billion in cash to build advanced AI systems intended to safely surpass human intelligence. The startup positions itself as mission-focused, prioritizing safety and long-term alignment over rapid commercialization.
Meta had previously attempted to acquire SSI and recruit Sutskever, insiders revealed. However, the efforts did not succeed, as the company remained firm on its independent path. Gross’s move to Meta is still a significant blow to SSI’s leadership ranks, highlighting the intense pressure on startups to retain top talent.
In response to growing challenges in its AI division, Meta recently launched a new unit Meta Superintelligence Labs to consolidate its AI efforts. The division will be spearheaded by former Scale AI CEO Alexandr Wang and ex-GitHub CEO Nat Friedman. Meta has invested $14.3 billion in Scale and continues ramping up its recruitment of elite AI experts.
Gross and Friedman, long-time collaborators, co-founded the venture capital firm NFDG. Their firm has backed several high-profile startups, including SSI, Figma, and Perplexity, giving them considerable influence in the emerging AI landscape.
Gross’s exit from Apple in 2013 after the acquisition of his startup, Cue, led to years of leading machine learning projects at the tech giant. His return to the forefront of AI innovation under Meta’s umbrella signals an aggressive new chapter for the company.
As Meta builds its AI empire, all eyes are now on Sutskever’s leadership at SSI.
Magazine 
