--- title: "Meta Is Apparently Developing a Secret, Powerful New AI" description: "According to a new report, Meta-formerly-Facebook is secretly developing a powerful new AI model designed to compete with OpenAI's GPT-4." date: "2023-09-11" modified: "2023-09-11" authors: - name: "Maggie Harrison Dupré" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/mharrison" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/meta-powerful-ai" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" - "Meta" tags: - "ai" - "mark zuckerberg" - "Meta" - "the digest" --- # Meta Is Apparently Developing a Secret, Powerful New AI ![According to a new report, Meta-formerly-Facebook is secretly developing a powerful new AI model designed to compete with OpenAI's GPT-4.]() *\Image: Anadolu via Getty\* ## Second Wind As OpenAI and Google sprint ahead in the ongoing Silicon Valley AI race, Meta — yes, the company that renamed itself just three years ago to go all in on the prior tech craze of the metaverse — appears [more determined than ever]() to catch up. According [to new reporting from *The Wall Street Journal*](), Meta is secretly developing a powerful new AI model designed to compete with OpenAI's GPT-4, the most advanced iteration of the rival AI firm's large language model (LLM) to date. Very little is known about the model, and as the *WSJ* reports, the details of the AI — which, as of now, is reportedly intended to "help other companies to build services that produce sophisticated text, analysis and other output" — may still be subject to change. It's also worth noting that this isn't Meta's first foray into LLM territory; LLAMA-2, [the company's much-hyped language model,]() was released [just a few months ago](). But according to *WSJ's* sources, Meta is hoping that its new AI will be "several times more powerful" than LLAMA-2 — a sign, perhaps, that LLAMA-2 isn't entirely cutting it as a GPT-4 alternative, and that Meta knows it has to seriously up its ante if it's going to keep up with its competitors. ## Dust in the Wind Per the report, the model is being built by a Meta team — formed earlier this year by the company's founder and longtime overlord Mark Zuckerberg — that was initially tasked with expediting the company's effort to build a generative AI system able to "produce human-like expressions." Don't hold your breath; the team reportedly plans to start training the new AI by early 2024, and in the meantime, in an effort to expand its AI-supporting infrastructure, Meta has apparently been busy acquiring those [coveted ]()[Nvidia H100 computing chips](). The report also noted that Zuckerberg has been pushing to make the firm's new AI open-source — a decision that's reportedly troubled Meta's lawyers, who are said to have raised some valid concerns about threats such as potential AI-abetted copyright infringement and the use of AI to generate disinformation. Importantly, OpenAI isn't Meta's only major competitor. Google is also a leader in the gold rush-hungry pack, while smaller firms like the heavily [Google-funded Anthropic]() have also made a big splash. Apple, meanwhile, is reportedly spending "[millions of dollars a day]()" to train its AI. And it's worth mentioning that Meta isn't the only company with a new model on the horizon. Google's forthcoming, Gemini AI has drawn wide anticipation, and may well [wind up kicking GPT-4's ass](). And if Meta doesn't get anything new and impressive into public hands before then? It all remains to be seen, of course, but Zuck could find himself left even deeper in the dust than he anticipated. **More on Meta's AI efforts:** [*Meta Launching AI-Powered Friends to Talk to on Facebook*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've reported extensively on the rise of AI as a cultural and business force shaping the media industry, and more broadly how those dynamics are changing how we all consume and share information and relate to one another. I'm also fascinated by public health policy and ethics, the role of emerging tech in politics and governance — and the powerful people and forces at those intersections — climate change, and the environment. My investigation on Sports Illustrated's use of AI-generated authors with fictional biographies won a 2024 Mirror Award for "Best Story on Media Coverage of Artificial Intelligence in Journalism and the Media" from Syracuse University's SI Newhouse School, I contributed to Niemen Lab's 2025 Predictions for Journalism series, and I've discussed my work for Futurism during appearances on NPR, CNN, the BBC, the CBC, and more. I grew up in rural Pennsylvania and attended the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where I played Division I field hockey for the Minutewomen as a midfielder. Since then, I've lived in New Orleans, Louisiana and Manhattan, New York. I spend my free time running, reading, perusing archival fashion, and searching for the world’s best negroni. I also have a debonair tuxedo cat, Westley, who's named after "The Princess Bride." ### Author social links [Bluesky]()