AMD buys firm founded by AI ‘godmother’ Fei-Fei Li

Chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) announced on Monday the acquisition of World Labs, an artificial intelligence firm founded by Fei-Fei Li, a leading researcher often dubbed "The Godmother of AI." The deal, valued at approximately $8.2 billion, will position Li as AMD's chief scientist.

Li founded World Labs with the aim of developing "spatial intelligence" technology. This technology can simulate 3D environments from images, video, and text, setting it apart from other AI systems that primarily generate text and images. Instead of creating new content, World Labs focuses on researching world models. These models learn how the physical world operates and can simulate and predict outcomes, with potential applications in robotics and virtual simulations.

Li expressed her enthusiasm for the acquisition in a blog post, stating that AMD's investment reflects a commitment to accelerating advancements in this field. To achieve this, she emphasized the need to scale efforts, expand reach, and strengthen connections with hardware.

AMD's recent valuation of US$1 trillion places it among the ranks of other major players in the artificial intelligence boom, though it still lags behind Nvidia, the company widely recognized as the leader in AI-related chip technology.