The logo of Meta is seen at the Viva Technology conference dedicated to innovation and startups at Porte de Versailles exhibition center in Paris, France, June 11, 2025.
Gonzalo Fuentes | Reuters
Meta Platforms has paused hiring for its new artificial intelligence division, ending a spending spree that saw it acquire a wave of expensive hires in AI researchers and engineers, the company confirmed Thursday.
The pause was first reported by the Wall Street Journal, which said that the freeze went into effect last week and came amid a broader restructuring of the group, citing people familiar with the matter.
In a statement shared with CNBC, a Meta spokesperson said that the pause was simply “some basic organizational planning: creating a solid structure for our new superintelligence efforts after bringing people on board and undertaking yearly budgeting and planning exercises.”
According to the WSJ report, a recent restructuring inside Meta has divided its AI efforts into four teams. That includes a team focused on building machine superintelligence, dubbed the “TBD lab,” or “To Be Determined,” an AI products division, an infrastructure division, and a division that focuses on longer-term projects and exploration.
It added that all four groups belong to “Meta Superintelligence Labs,” a name that reflects Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg’s desire to build AI that can outperform the smartest humans on cognitive tasks.
In pursuit of that goal, Meta has been aggressively spending on AI this year. That included efforts to poach top talent from other AI companies, with offers said to include signing bonuses as high as $100 million.
In one of its most aggressive moves, Meta acquired Alexandr Wang, founder of Scale AI, as part of a deal that saw the Facebook parent dish out $14.3 billion for a 49% stake in the AI startup.
Wang now leads the company’s AI lab focused on advancing its Llama series of open-source large language models.
Too much spending?
While Meta’s aggressive hiring strategy has caught headlines in recent months for their high price tags, other megacap tech companies have also been pouring billions into AI talent, as well as R&D and AI infrastructure.
However, the sudden AI hiring pause by the owner of Facebook and Instagram comes amid growing concerns that investments in AI are moving too fast and a broader sell-off of U.S. technology stocks this week.
Earlier this week, it was reported that OpenAI CEO Sam Altman had told a group of journalists that he believes AI is in a bubble.
However, many tech analysts and investors disagree with the notion of an AI bubble.
“Altman is the golden child of the AI Revolution, and there could be aspects of the AI food chain that show some froth over time, but overall, we believe tech stocks are undervalued relative to this 4th Industrial Revolution,” said tech analyst Dan Ives of Wedbush Securities.
He also dismissed the idea that Meta might be cutting back on AI spending in a meaningful way, saying that Meta is simply in “digestion mode” after a massive spending spree.
“After making several acquisition-sized offers and hires in the nine-figure range, I see the hiring freeze as a natural resting point for Meta,” added Daniel Newman, CEO at Futurum Group.
Before pouring more investment into its AI teams, the company likely needs time to place and access its new talent and determine whether they are ready to make the type of breakthroughs the company is looking for, he added.
U.S. President Donald Trump gestures as he poses next to a sign before a family photo at a world leaders’ summit on ending the Gaza war, amid a U.S.-brokered prisoner-hostage swap and ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas, in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, Oct. 13, 2025.
Suzanne Plunkett | Reuters
This might not be Christmas, but the war in the Middle East is over — at least according to U.S. President Donald Trump.
On Monday, Trump declared at the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, that the “long and painful nightmare” was finally over for both the Israelis and Palestinians. More straightforwardly, Trump gave an unequivocal “yes” when asked by reporters if the war in the Middle East has ended, Reuters reported.
Broadcom, meanwhile, surged almost 10% after it jointly announced a partnership with — who else? — OpenAI to build and deploy custom chips. But where this puts Nvidia, OpenAI’s other near and dear one, and on whose chips the ChatGPT maker relies, remains a question.
Though Christmas has yet to arrive, OpenAI is starting to look like the tech sector’s Santa Claus, who has his sack full of presents — and, more importantly, cash, according to Oracle.
— CNBC’s Holly Ellyatt contributed to this report.
What you need to know today
And finally…
U.S. President Donald Trump shakes hands with Argentina’s President Javier Milei during the 80th United Nations General Assembly, in New York City, New York, U.S., Sept. 23, 2025.
In a move that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced Thursday on social media site X, the U.S. is providing a $20 billion currency swap line with Argentina’s central bank — essentially exchanging stable U.S. dollars with volatile pesos.
The move comes amid liquidity concerns in Argentina that threatened stability for the country as it faces key midterm elections. There are equal parts economic and political stakes with the venture, which marks the first U.S. intervention of this nature since rescuing Mexico in 1995.
Google will invest $15 billion to build data center capacity for a new artificial intelligence hub in southern India, Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian announced at an event Tuesday.
The investment will roll out over the next five years, and will be Google’s largest AI hub in the world outside of the U.S, Kurian added.
Earlier on Monday, the Minister for Human Resources Development of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, Nara Lokesh, put the 1-gigawatt project at $10 billion.
The deal comes after “a year of intense discussions and relentless effort,” and “is just the beginning,” Lokesh said in a post on the social media platform X.
The Indian outlet Economic Times previously reported that the investment would be made by Google’s Indian subsidiary Raiden Infotech, which plans to develop three campuses across the city of Visakhapatnam.
According to another report from ET on Tuesday, state officials planned to continue doubling down on such projects and to significantly scale up the state’s computing capacity over the next three years.
Companies are amping up investments in infrastructure to keep pace with surging global demand for cloud services as AI services become increasingly popular.
As part of its second-quarter earnings in July, Google increased its forecast for capital expenditures in 2025 to $85 billion, up from $75 billion in February, due to “strong and growing demand for our Cloud products and services.”
That same month, the company also announced plans to invest $25 billion in data center and artificial intelligence infrastructure over the next two years in states across the biggest electric grid in the U.S.
India is increasingly attracting multinational players, such as Microsoft and AWS, to invest in the country’s cloud and AI infrastructure.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks while World leaders listen during a summit of European and Middle Eastern leaders on Gaza on October 13, 2025 in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.
Chip Somodevilla | Getty Images
This might not be Christmas, but the war in the Middle East is over — at least according to U.S. President Donald Trump.
On Monday, Trump declared at the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, that the “long and painful nightmare” was finally over for both the Israelis and Palestinians. More straightforwardly, Trump gave an unequivocal “yes” when asked by reporters if the war in the Middle East has ended, Reuters reported.
Broadcom, meanwhile, surged almost 10% after it jointly announced a partnership with — who else? — OpenAI to build and deploy custom chips. But where this puts Nvidia, OpenAI’s other near and dear one, and on whose chips the ChatGPT maker relies, remains a question.
Though Christmas has yet to arrive, OpenAI is starting to look like the tech sector’s Santa Claus.
— CNBC’s Holly Ellyatt contributed to this report.
What you need to know today
War in the Middle East is over, Trump says. At Israel’s parliament, Trump gave a speech in which he said that the “long and painful nightmare” for both the Israelis and Palestinians was over. He also urged, at a separate event, for leaders to put “old feuds” behind.
Broadcom joins the OpenAI party. The two companies announced Monday that they’re planning to develop and deploy OpenAI-designed chips, amounting to 10 gigawatts, starting late next year. Shares of Broadcom popped almost 10% on the news.
JPMorgan says it will invest $10 billion in critical industries. The four areas of focus — which the bank considers crucial to U.S. security — are: defense and aerospace, “frontier” technologies such as AI, energy technology and supply chain and advanced manufacturing.
[PRO] European sectors less affected by trade war. The continent isn’t in the crosshairs of Trump’s latest tariffs, but a weakening U.S. dollar could affect Europe’s exports. UBS picks three sectors more shielded from that — leaving out a notable one.
And finally…
U.S. President Donald Trump shakes hands with Argentina’s President Javier Milei during the 80th United Nations General Assembly, in New York City, New York, U.S., Sept. 23, 2025.
In a move that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced Thursday on social media site X, the U.S. is providing a $20 billion currency swap line with Argentina’s central bank — essentially exchanging stable U.S. dollars with volatile pesos.
The move comes amid liquidity concerns in Argentina that threatened stability for the country as it faces key midterm elections. There are equal parts economic and political stakes with the venture, which marks the first U.S. intervention of this nature since rescuing Mexico in 1995.
