What’s Meta splashing the cash around for then?

Welcome to AI Collision 💥,

In today’s collision between AI and our world:

• $10 million here…
• $100 million there…
• $32 billion as well.

If that’s enough to get Zuck splashing the cash, read on…

AI Collision 💥

There are some rumours floating around that big tech is starting to pay big money for the elite of the elite when it comes to AI development.

Now, you might already have a number in your head about how much a company might pay a single person working on an AI superintelligence team…but I bet that number is too low.

That was posted a little over a week ago.

And then this…

And just when you think this might be a big rumour getting blown way out of proportion, this on CNBC yesterday,

What is Mark Zuckerberg playing at?

Meta does have around $77.8 billion in cash up their sleeve, but even this is all just a little too much isn’t it?

And it does raise the question, is this really just Meta trying to go all in on AI dominance… or are there problems at Meta in that they’re not extracting the results they seek, so are very aggressively looking elsewhere to find it?

And if the second outcome is the case, just how shaky does Meta’s $1.7 trillion valuation look right now?

In just the last couple of weeks Meta has,

• Signed a massive nuclear pre-purchase agreement with Constellation Energy,
• Is advancing nuclear request for proposals (RFP) aimed at bringin on another 1 to 4 gigawatts of new nuclear capacity of which it’s said it’s already had 50 qualified submissions from developers, utilities, and technology firms across 20 states.
• Spent around $15 billion for a massive stake in Scale AI an upcoming AI data company, albeit reports are now coming out there are better competitors in the market.
• Struck a deal with Anduril Industries to co-develop XR (AR/VR) battlefield wearables, bolting Meta’s VR/AR and Llama AI capabilities into Anduril’s Lattice command system.

So, they’re betting big on AI and striking significant deals. Also the market has always had a very love/hate (mainly hate) relationship with Zuckerberg.

And you can’t help but feel like Meta is paying over the odds right now and throwing a lot of darts, hoping something sticks.

Altman also said in the interview earlier, than none of his best people are taking up the Meta offers…

Yeah right.

If someone threw Tom Cruise money at you in the AI space, 100% you’d go. I tell you now, everyone has a number. And $100 million is ceratinly it unless you’re already Elon Musk or Sam Altman.

Of course he’s not going to go on his brother’s new podcast and cry about how all the best talent from OpenAI are moving to Meta for gigantic cheques.

But I bet plenty have.

I also bet $100 million isn’t the number either. It’s a ploy from Altman to throw shade at Meta, and make those already at Meta probably ask, “where’s my $100 million?”

So it’s ceratinly a game of one-upmanship here between Altman and Zuckerberg and the market and Zuckerberg. I’m surprised Elon Musk hasn’t entered the conversation yet… but I’m guessing he’s a little more preoccupied with this right now…

My take, Meta is throwing a lot of money at AI, and it’s going to pay off. From their lofty ambition to be a complete advertising vertical with AI to their lofty AI consumer devices ambitions I think Meta does become one of the dominant AI players long term.

Probably bigger and more important than OpenAI, xAI, Amazon, or Microsoft. Google might be another level, but I can certainly see the two dominant AI pillars of our world in the near future coming from Google and Meta.

So yes, big money is getting thrown about. Because it can be. Because that’s how important this is to the future of tech, to the future of our world, and to the future of Meta’s stock price.

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Capital at risk

Boomers & Busters 💰

AI and AI-related stocks moving and shaking up the markets this week. (All performance data below over the rolling week).

Boom 📈

• Vertiv (NYSE:VRT) up 7%
• Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) up 6%
• Micron (NASDAQ:MU) up 5%

Bust 📉

• UiPath (NYSE:PATH) down 4%
• Alibaba (NYSE:BABA) down 4%
• Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) down 3%

From the hive mind 🧠

• Will implementing AI into the UK defence force really make them 10-times more lethal? Or are they just coming off a low base? You can answer that question below by the way, but this is a good look at the UK’s AI and defence ambitions.
• We mentioned Amazon and the threat of AI and their workers on Wednesday. Here’s exactly what CEO Andy Jassy has to say about AI and Amazon.
• Brains will go where the money is. And also where the visas allow for it. If there’s an AI arms race on, there should also be an AI brains race on too…which is the number’s Meta is throwing around are real, then the US wins.

Artificial Polltelligence 🗳️

Weirdest AI image of the day

Yarn art of Stephen Hawking attacked by spider

ChatGPT’s random quote of the day

Thanks for reading, and don’t forget to leave comments and questions below,

Sam Volkering

Editor-in-Chief

AI Collision