In a landmark move underscoring its renewed focus on artificial intelligence, Meta has announced a $14.3 billion investment in data-labeling startup Scale AI, acquiring a 49% stake and placing the startup’s valuation at $29 billion.
The deal is not just financial — it marks a strategic shift in Meta’s AI roadmap. Scale AI’s co-founder and CEO, Alexandr Wang, will be joining Meta to head its newly formed superintelligence division. As part of the transition, a few Scale team members will also migrate to Meta.
Confirming the development, the tech giant stated: “We will deepen the work we do together producing data for AI models, and Alexandr Wang will join Meta to work on our superintelligence efforts.”
Wang’s appointment comes at a time when Meta faces fierce competition from AI frontrunners like OpenAI, Google, and DeepSeek AI. Wang had previously remarked, “There is no AI ecosystem in drones… that’s 20 years away,” but now takes on a central role in shaping Meta’s AI future.
In his farewell address to Scale, Wang wrote, “It has been the absolute greatest pleasure of my life to serve as your CEO… This is a deeply unique moment—not just for me, but for Scale as well.” He will continue to serve on Scale’s board, while former Uber Eats chief Jason Droege steps in as interim CEO.
The acquisition represents Meta’s second-largest investment to date, after WhatsApp, and signals Mark Zuckerberg’s commitment to regaining momentum in the global AI race by placing a bet on Wang’s pragmatic, business-focused leadership.
