Meta has acquired a 49% stake in data-labeling startup Scale AI, valued at $29 billion, for a reported $14.3 billion. As part of the strategic investment, Meta has also poached Scale AI’s 28-year-old founder and CEO Alexandr Wang, who is set to take a prominent leadership role in shaping the social media giant’s AI trajectory.
The deal comes amid Meta’s ongoing struggle to maintain its competitive edge in the rapidly evolving AI landscape. Once regarded as a pioneer in open-source AI development, Meta has in recent months lost key personnel and delayed the release of its next-generation open-source models, ceding ground to rivals such as Google DeepMind, OpenAI, and China’s DeepSeek.
Wang, a prodigy who founded Scale AI at just 19, has built the company into a powerhouse specializing in training data for AI systems, serving major clients in defense, finance, and technology. His track record of scaling AI infrastructure and commitment to data quality makes him a vital asset as Meta pivots to become a more AI-centric company.
According to sources familiar with the matter, Wang will lead a newly formed AI division within Meta, focusing on accelerating product integration, enhancing AI model training efficiency, and re-establishing Meta’s leadership in open-source AI. While he will retain a role in Scale AI, operational control of the startup will shift to a newly appointed executive team.
Industry experts view the acquisition as a calculated gamble by Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, who has emphasized AI as a pillar of the company’s future. The addition of Wang signals Meta’s intention to double down on core AI infrastructure, even as other companies focus on consumer-facing tools like chatbots and copilots.
With the deal now public, all eyes are on how quickly Meta can turn this massive investment and leadership reshuffle into competitive advantage and whether Alexandr Wang can deliver the same transformative results within Meta that he did at Scale AI.
