By spending $8.2 billion to buy World Labs, AMD (AMD) CEO Lisa Su gained an AI innovator and a possible successor when the time comes.
AMD announced late this afternoon a deal to acquire World Labs, a San Francisco-based AI modeling lab that focuses on software for 3D environments.
The transaction is expected to be completed by the end of 2026.
World Labs was founded in 2024 and is led by Dr. Fei-Fei Li, a leading AI researcher known in tech circles as the “Godmother of AI.” She was formerly the chief scientist at Google (GOOG) Cloud.
Li will join AMD as executive vice president and chief scientist. The direct reporting line to Su underscores the central role Li will play in shaping AMD amid the unprecedented AI boom.
At the same time, Li will add new operational layers to her resume by working closely with one of the tech sector’s most storied CEOs, including having a greater presence on Wall Street and executing big deals like the one Su closed with Meta (META) this year.
AMD shares rose slightly after hours.
“This is a purchase of talent and model information, not a revenue play. AMD is bringing in the people who build the models its future chips will need to run. Fei-Fei defended his view: ‘Without a focused hardware effort, the effectiveness of AI is hampered,'” said technology analyst Patrick Moorhead.
Citigroup analyst Atif Malik also shared an initial reaction to AMD’s latest transaction.
“By adding Dr. Fei-Fei Li and his team, AMD gains deeper visibility into how AI models are evolving, strengthening its competitive position against NVIDIA and accelerating its broader AI platform ambitions,” Malik wrote. “We believe the motivations for this transaction include: 1) acquiring more top-tier AI engineers; 2) better positioning the company in physical AI and 3) building better end-to-end systems. We maintain AMD as our preferred semiconductor choice for growth in 2026.”
Brian Sozzi is the editor-in-chief of Yahoo Finance, host of the Sozzi unleashed morning show, the ‘Powerful actors with Brian Sozzi podcast and member of the Yahoo Finance editorial leadership team. Follow Sozzi on @BrianSozzi, InstagramAnd LinkedIn. Any advice on stories? Email brian.sozzi@yahoofinance.com.
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