Who is Matt Deitke? AI Prodigy Who Said No to Meta Before $250M Offer

Matt Deitke is a rising star in the AI world. At just 24, he dropped out of his PhD program in computer science at the University of Washington to pursue hands-on research. Soon, he became one of the most sought-after AI experts in the industry.

Turning Down Meta’s Initial Offer

According to The New York Times, Meta initially approached Deitke with a $125 million deal spread over four years. However, Deitke rejected the offer, surprising many in the tech community.

Zuckerberg Steps In

Things took a dramatic turn when Meta’s CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, personally met with Deitke. He doubled the offer to an incredible $250 million. “He would be paid up to $100 million of that in the first year,” the NYT reported. This move showed how far Meta was willing to go to secure top AI talent.

Deitke’s Work in AI

After leaving academia, Deitke joined the Allen Institute for AI in Seattle. There, he played a lead role in developing Molmo, a powerful AI chatbot that understands images, sound, and text.

His work gained further recognition when one of his research papers won an Outstanding Paper Award at NeurIPS 2022, one of the most prestigious conferences in the AI field.

Meta’s Race to Build an AI Super Team

Deitke’s hiring is part of a broader effort by Meta to create an elite AI team. The company is investing over $1 billion to attract top researchers. Another notable hire is Ruoming Pang, former head of Apple’s AI division, who was reportedly offered over $200 million.

Meta is also planning to spend $72 billion on capital infrastructure in the coming year.

Zuckerberg’s Vision

Zuckerberg made his intentions clear during an investor meeting:
“We’re building an elite, talent-dense team… there’s just an absolute premium for the best and most talented people.”