Home / Technology / Aussie AI Genius Jumps Ship for $2 Trillion Rival
Aussie AI Genius Jumps Ship for $2 Trillion Rival
17 Sep
Summary
- Andrew Tulloch, an Australian AI expert, departed Meta for Anthropic.
- His reported Meta package was $US1.5 billion over six years.
- Tulloch's move highlights Australia's 'brain drain' in AI.
Andrew Tulloch, an Australian AI prodigy who grew up in Perth, has departed Meta after less than a year. He is reportedly joining Anthropic, the company behind the Claude AI model. The exact value of his Meta compensation package is disputed, with reports suggesting $US1.5 billion over six years, which a Meta spokesman has denied as inaccurate.
Tulloch's academic and professional background is distinguished, including a perfect score at school and advanced mathematics degrees from the University of Sydney and Cambridge. He previously co-founded Thinking Machines Lab, which secured significant seed funding, attracting Meta's interest in acquisition.
His departure comes shortly after Meta released its new AI agent, Muse. Tulloch's move to Anthropic, which is reportedly aiming for a $US2 trillion valuation with an October listing, places him at the forefront of critical AI infrastructure questions regarding data center efficiency.
This situation highlights Australia's 'brain drain' challenge, as highly capable individuals like Tulloch and Tristan Buckmaster contribute to global AI advancements. The Assistant Minister for Science and Technology, Andrew Charlton, has acknowledged Australia's strength in producing AI talent and expressed a desire for these experts to return.
