Sam Altman Says Meta Tried (and Failed) to Lure OpenAI’s Top Talent with $100 Million Offers

Meta’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg is clearly on a mission. He’s been trying to hire some of the brightest minds in AI for a new “superintelligence” team—and he’s not holding back. To get the best of the best, especially from rivals like OpenAI and Google DeepMind, Meta has reportedly offered jaw-dropping compensation—up to $100 million in some cases. That’s not just a big number; it’s the kind of money that makes you stop and wonder.

This hiring push is tied to a new team that will work closely with former Scale AI CEO Alexandr Wang—and even sit near Zuckerberg himself. But despite those wild offers, it seems like Meta isn’t having much luck getting the people it really wants.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman talked about all this in a podcast with his brother, Jack Altman, which aired Tuesday. And while Sam confirmed that Meta did try to recruit his team, he also didn’t shy away from calling them out a bit.

New episode of Uncapped with @sama. Enjoy 🤗 pic.twitter.com/2IxYt3B4Gm

— Jack Altman (@jaltma) June 17, 2025

“They’ve been offering huge deals to our people—$100 million signing bonuses, massive salaries,” Altman said. “But I’m genuinely proud to say that, so far, our top talent has chosen to stay with us.”

For Altman, it’s not just about the money. He believes his team sees a bigger purpose at OpenAI—something that goes beyond paychecks. “I think they feel we have a better shot at building AGI,” he explained. “And maybe even becoming the most important company in the world one day.”

He also pointed out something deeper—something that hits at the heart of what makes a company thrive. “When you throw money at people without focusing on the mission, you don’t build a great culture,” Altman said. “And I think that matters more than people realize.”

Apparently, Meta even tried to hire Noam Brown, one of OpenAI’s key researchers, and Koray Kavukcuoglu, a top AI architect at Google. But both said no.

Altman believes that OpenAI’s success comes from its culture—a kind of creative, forward-thinking energy that pushes everyone to do their best. And he doesn’t think Meta has been able to capture that. “I respect Meta in a lot of ways,” he admitted. “But I just don’t think they’re a company known for true innovation.”

It’s not that Meta hasn’t made moves. They’ve brought on Alexandr Wang and even invested in his old company, Scale AI. They’ve also hired some big names from other AI companies, like Jack Rae from Google DeepMind and Johan Schalkwyk from Sesame AI. But there’s still a long road ahead if they want to compete with OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google DeepMind, all of whom are charging full-speed into the future.

To make things even more interesting, OpenAI is rumored to be working on a powerful new open-source AI model that could leave Meta even further behind.

Later in the podcast, Sam Altman hinted at something potentially game-changing: a new kind of social media experience powered by AI. Instead of the same old algorithmic feed, imagine an app that actually learns what you really want to see—and serves it up. “I think there's something exciting about building social networks where AI curates content just for you,” Altman said.

OpenAI is reportedly building its own version of this internally. Meanwhile, Meta is also exploring similar ideas through its Meta AI app. But it hasn’t been all smooth sailing. Some users say the Meta AI app feels awkward and have even accidentally shared personal chats publicly.

It’s still too early to tell which company will get AI-powered social media right—if anyone does. But one thing’s clear: the race is heating up. And with huge money on the table, strong emotions, and big ideas at stake, Sam Altman and Mark Zuckerberg look like they’re gearing up for a very personal rivalry in the world of artificial intelligence.