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Meta Taps AI Veteran to Lead Superintelligence Lab

By  |  July 26, 2025

Meta Platforms has named Shengjia Zhao, a prominent figure in the development of advanced AI technologies, as chief scientist of its recently established Superintelligence Lab, signaling an intensified focus on artificial general intelligence (AGI), according to Reuters.

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    Zhao, who played a key role in building ChatGPT and developing OpenAI’s GPT-4 and subsequent mini models, joins Meta amid a wave of high-profile talent acquisitions from rival AI labs. CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced the appointment Friday on Threads, emphasizing Zhao’s central role in shaping the lab’s research direction. Per Reuters, Zhao is one of several former OpenAI researchers to have joined Meta in recent weeks, underscoring a growing competition for top AI talent.

    In his Threads post, Zuckerberg stated that Zhao would be setting the lab’s scientific agenda and working closely with him and Alexandr Wang, Meta’s Chief AI Officer. Wang, formerly CEO of Scale AI, joined Meta after the company acquired a significant stake in the startup — part of a broader strategy to build in-house capabilities at speed.

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    Meta’s Superintelligence Lab was launched to streamline the company’s efforts around its Llama language models and long-term AGI goals. The lab operates independently from FAIR (Fundamental AI Research), Meta’s established AI division led by deep learning veteran Yann LeCun. According to Reuters, Zhao is also a co-founder of the lab, positioning him at the forefront of Meta’s next-generation AI ambitions.

    The move follows criticism over the relatively modest performance of Meta’s Llama 4 model compared to competitors. In response, Meta has escalated its recruitment efforts, offering some of the industry’s most competitive compensation packages and engaging in strategic partnerships to lure top researchers. As noted by Reuters, this aggressive push reflects Zuckerberg’s determination to close the gap with AI leaders like OpenAI, Google DeepMind, and Anthropic.

    Source: Reuters