FT: Meta to lose one of its key AI specialists

Scientist Ian Lecun, who led the company's research into artificial intelligence, is leaving Meta. He plans to leave the IT giant to found his own startup, while Mark Zuckerberg is looking to radically overhaul the company's AI operations. Investors are wary of Meta's plans to increase capex for this purpose, putting pressure on the quotes. Since the October collapse, Meta has been the worst performing stock of the Magnificent Seven in 2025.

One of the most prominent employees of IT giant Meta will leave in the coming months - chief scientist for artificial intelligence Jan Lecun, the Financial Times writes, citing sources. His departure coincides with a major restructuring of the company's strategy: Mark Zuckerberg, founder of Meta, is strengthening the AI direction to challenge OpenAI and Google in the race to create more powerful models of artificial intelligence, the publication notes.

According to the FT's interlocutors, Lecun wants to found his own startup. Earlier, Zuckerberg decided to wind down long-term research projects of the Fundamental AI Research Lab (FAIR), which Lecun headed since 2013, and focus on the rapid introduction of commercial AI products. The company believes that Meta has fallen behind its competitors, and the focus is now on speed and practicality.

New top executives have been appointed to lead the new wave of AI initiatives, including Alexander Wang (formerly CEO of Scale AI). According to Reuters, Zuckerberg has brought in several executives with industry-record salaries - hundreds of millions of dollars in options and bonuses - which has displeased the old research team.

The stock fell 17.3% following its quarterly report released on October 29, where the company announced plans to increase spending on AI. That decline erased about $240 billion of the company's capitalization, following Zuckerberg's announcement of further growth in AI investment - spending could exceed $100 billion as early as 2026. The collapse made Meta the worst performing Magnificent Seven stock in 2025.

At the opening of trading on November 11, shares were cheaper by 0.7%. Investors are alarmed by Meta's plans to significantly increase future capex, MarketWatch wrote . According to BNP Paribas analyst Stefan Slowinski, Meta's results for the third quarter and the subsequent decline in quotations only confirm that the company's aggressive investments in artificial intelligence are putting pressure on profitability and preventing it from creating value for shareholders.

Of particular concern, according to the analyst, is the fact that Meta prefers to finance its AI investments by placing bonds and taking out private loans rather than using its own funds.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor