Sam Altman Claims Meta Offered $100 Million Bonuses to Lure OpenAI Employees

The race to recruit top AI researchers has reached unprecedented levels, with leading tech firms treating them like professional athletes. These highly skilled individuals are seen as key assets capable of tipping the balance in the battle for dominance in artificial intelligence. The industry-wide belief is that a few exceptional engineers can determine a company’s success or failure in the fast-moving AI space.

Meta’s Bold Move: $100 Million Offers to OpenAI Employees

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has revealed that Meta is aggressively trying to lure talent from his company with massive financial incentives. Speaking on the Uncapped podcast, hosted by his brother, Altman said, “They started making giant offers to a lot of people on our team — like $100 million signing bonuses and even more in annual compensation.”

Such offers reflect the escalating value of AI talent, particularly those involved in building cutting-edge large language models (LLMs) and advancing generative AI technologies.

OpenAI Staff Staying Loyal — For Now

Despite Meta’s tempting offers, Altman claimed that OpenAI has so far managed to retain its top personnel. “At least, so far, none of our best people have decided to take them up on that,” he noted during the podcast. This loyalty may stem from OpenAI’s mission-driven culture, its leadership in the AI field, or the pride of being at the forefront of transformative technology.

Meta’s Silence Raises Eyebrows

Meta has not responded to these claims, and Reuters reported that it could not independently confirm Altman's statements. However, the absence of a formal denial has only fueled speculation about the depth of Meta’s recruitment push as it ramps up efforts in advanced AI development.

Meta's Superintelligence Ambitions

Altman’s comments come shortly after Meta made a major move in the AI space. The company invested $14.3 billion in Scale AI, a startup known for its data-labeling capabilities. As part of the deal, Meta hired Scale AI’s founder and CEO Alexandr Wang to lead its newly formed superintelligence division.

This development signals Meta’s serious intent to challenge OpenAI and other leading AI players by focusing on the development of artificial general intelligence (AGI), or systems with superhuman reasoning capabilities.

Meta No Longer a Clear Open-Source Leader

Meta was once praised for its transparency and contributions to open-source AI, with models like LLaMA gaining widespread industry attention. However, recent staff exits and delays in launching new models have raised concerns about Meta’s momentum. Meanwhile, competitors such as Google, China’s DeepSeek, and OpenAI continue to push boundaries with rapid updates and more powerful AI models.

Meta’s pivot toward proprietary AI development through the superintelligence unit shows a strategic shift from its earlier, more open stance. The company appears to be narrowing its focus in a bid to stay competitive in what is increasingly becoming a winner-takes-all market.

Conclusion

The revelations by Sam Altman highlight the growing frenzy in the global AI talent market, where companies like Meta are willing to invest millions to recruit the best minds. As Meta looks to reclaim its position in the AI hierarchy by investing heavily in superintelligence and securing top leaders like Alexandr Wang, OpenAI’s ability to retain its experts could determine whether it maintains its edge. The next phase of the AI revolution may hinge not just on algorithms, but on the few individuals capable of building them.