Meta aggressively pursued a potential acquisition of Safe Superintelligence (SSI)—an AI startup founded by Ilya Sutskever, valued at $32 billion in April 2025—marking a bold move in Silicon Valley’s AI arms race. While the bid did not result in a deal, Meta then pivoted to recruit SSI’s CEO Daniel Gross and former GitHub boss Nat Friedman to lead its AI efforts
🚀 Why SSI?
- Elite AI Credentials: Co-founded by OpenAI’s former chief scientist Ilya Sutskever, SSI landed $2 billion at a $32 billion valuation, backed by Greenoaks, Alphabet, Nvidia, and Andreessen Horowitz
- Safety-First Mission: SSI focuses on “safe superintelligence,” aligning AI development with human-friendly objectives—a critical differentiator investing.com
- Talent Magnet: SSI’s leadership includes Daniel Gross and Ilya Sutskever, whose reputations make them prime targets for Meta’s AI ambitions
🧩 Meta’s Multi-Pronged Strategy
- Acquire the Startup: Meta explored directly acquiring SSI during early 2025 discussions
- Pivot to Talent Hiring: After acquisition failed, Meta recruited SSI CEO Daniel Gross and Nat Friedman to its AI team
- Reinforce Data Strength: Meta also secured a $14 billion investment into Scale AI, complementing talent acquisition efforts
- Launch “Superintelligence Team”: Gross and Friedman are joining Meta’s new elite “superintelligence group” under former Scale CEO Alexandr Wang
- Compete for AI Dominance: Meta’s moves reflect escalating competition with OpenAI, Google, and Apple for top-tier AI models, talent, and infrastructure .
🛠️ What It Means for Meta
- Leadership Framing: Despite deal setbacks, Meta secured a leadership edge through high-profile hires.
- Tech Stack Boost: Teaming with Scale AI enhances Meta’s data and model development capabilities.
- Talent Race Heatup: Offers topped nine figures—Meta is clearly in the talent arms race
- AI Mission Alignment: Acquiring both talent and infrastructure positions Meta for a larger role in safe-AI research and development.
✅ Final Takeaway
Meta’s bold attempt to acquire SSI and its pivot to hire its founders highlight a strategic pivot toward building high-end internal AI capability. Even without ownership, snapping up SSI leadership—alongside heavy investment in Scale AI—signals Meta’s ambition to dominate generative and safe-AI development in the next era.
