OpenAI has finally responded to the company's "talent drain," in particular due to the poaching attempts from Meta. Altman's AI startup is reportedly voicing for a "corporate burglary" it seems.
OpenAI Now Ready to Offer Better Compensation, But Can It Meet Meta's $100 Million Signing Bonus?
Well, if you are unaware of the situation, Meta has adopted a more aggressive approach towards expanding its pool of AI talent, part of which is by luring in OpenAI's employees by providing them with massive compensation. It is reported that Mark Zuckerberg has offered more than $100 million in signing bonuses to some of the employees. Meta has been looking towards talent from Google, OpenAI, and even Anthropic, as the firm is now in a bid to regain its lead in the AI hype, and its recent investment into Scale AI is a prime example.
Now, in an internal memo sent out by OpenAI's Chief Research Officer Mark Chen (via WIRED), he claims that the firm is aware of the poaching attempts by Meta, and says that the administration isn't sitting idly by at all. Here's what Chen had to say:
I feel a visceral feeling right now, as if someone has broken into our home and stolen something. Please trust that we haven’t been sitting idly by. We’ve been more proactive than ever before, we’re recalibrating comp, and we’re scoping out creative ways to recognize and reward top talent.
Well, poaching attempts from Meta made OpenAI realize how "under-treated" their employees are, and one of the bigger reasons for why Meta has been successful in their talent-grabbing measure is that OpenAI is reported to have extremely demanding conditions. The operational pace is said to be as high as 80-hour workweeks, with employees reporting significant fatigue and burnout. Apart from this, OpenAI's pursuit of transition from a mere "research lab" to a commercial entity has made many researchers feeling violated.
OpenAI advises employees not to get caught up in the pressure of Meta's gigantic offers, insisting that they ignore the noise, but leaving out $100 million in just signing bonuses is a difficult step. OpenAI's executives are reportedly handling researchers individually and guiding them in case competitors approach with compelling offers. Chen has called Meta's offers a "side quest" and that the work OpenAI is doing is the real deal, which shows that efforts are being made to retain the top talent by any means.
