Meta agreed to pay $14.8 billion for a 49 percent stake in the AI data firm Scale AI, which will give the company access to talent and data services.

Meta Platforms has agreed to take a 49% stake in artificial intelligence startup Scale AI for $14.8 billion, The Information reported on Tuesday, citing two people familiar with the matter.

Meta is betting big on a new superintelligence lab, luring talent with massive paychecks and bringing in Scale AI’s Alexandr Wang—but insiders warn that deep internal dysfunction could sabotage the effort.

Meta eyes a $10 billion deal with Scale AI, signaling a stronger push for A.I. research and innovation, with potential shifts in the tech industry’s power dynamics.

As part of the deal, Scale AI’s CEO will take a top position inside Meta, leading a new “superintelligence” lab, according to the report.

Dystopian thriller “Soylent Green” ends with the hero discovering that the mystery food that sustains New York’s citizens, and whose name the movie bears, is actually made of human beings. Reports that Meta Platforms may acquire 49 per cent of artificial intelligence company Scale AI for $15bn illustrate a similar plot twist. AI, too, is people.

Meta reportedly is planning to invest around $14.8 billion for a 49% stake in Scale AI, with the startup's CEO to join a new AI lab that Mark Zuckerberg is personally staffing. When the news broke yesterday,

Robert Leathern, former VP of product at Google and Meta, joins 'Squawk on the Street' to discuss Meta's investment in Scale AI.