Zuckerberg’s AI ambitions lift Meta to record stock high

As part of its AI push, Meta has launched Superintelligence Labs, led by Alexandr Wang and Nat Friedman, hired top talent from OpenAI, and plans to raise $29 billion to expand data centers and boost compute capacity in 2024

Meta Platforms Inc. closed at a record high of $738.09 on June 30, driven by investor optimism surrounding the company’s escalating efforts in artificial intelligence. The stock edged up 0.6% for the day, surpassing its previous record close of $736.67 set on February 14, according to Dow Jones Market Data. Earlier in the session, Meta also hit an all-time intraday high of $747.90.

The stock rally follows Meta’s strategic moves in the AI space, including a $14 billion investment in Scale AI earlier this month. The deal, which grants Meta a 49% stake in the data-labeling startup, marks a significant step in its ambition to lead in superintelligent AI systems.

As part of this initiative, Meta has established the new Superintelligence Labs division, co-led by Scale AI founder Alexandr Wang and former GitHub CEO Nat Friedman. The team already comprises 11 new hires, many of whom were recently recruited from rival firms such as OpenAI.

Meta's talent hunt alarms OpenAI

Among the notable additions are Lucas Beyer, Alexander Kolesnikov, and Xiaohua Zhai, all formerly with OpenAI’s Zurich office. Additional researchers—Shuchao Bi, Hongyu Ren, Jiahui Yu, and Shengjia Zhao—have also joined the Superintelligence Labs team, according to The Information and Bloomberg. Reports suggest that some talent has been offered compensation packages worth as much as $100 million to join Meta’s ambitious AI initiative.

The aggressive hiring spree has sparked concern within OpenAI, prompting Chief Research Officer Mark Chen to address employees in an internal memo. "It feels like someone has broken into our home and stolen something," Chen wrote, noting that he and CEO Sam Altman are actively working to retain critical talent, as reported by Wired.

Meanwhile, Meta is also pursuing a major infrastructure buildout to support its AI ambitions. According to The Financial Times, the company is seeking to raise $29 billion to expand its U.S. data center footprint. In April, Meta raised its capital expenditure forecast for the year to a range of $64–$72 billion, up from $60–$65 billion. CEO Mark Zuckerberg has also announced plans to bring 1 gigawatt of compute capacity online in 2024, and build a 2-gigawatt mega data center to support its AI operations.