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AMD CEO rejects sky high salaries to poach talent
Lisa Su says pay alone cannot buy innovation or loyalty in AI talent wars, marking a cautious stance against nine figure offers.
Lisa Su argues pay alone cannot buy innovation or loyalty, aligning with Anthropic on mission driven hiring.
AMD CEO Rejects $100 Million Salaries to Poach Talent
The AI talent race is intensifying as Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has offered nine figure salaries to lure rivals’ staff. AMD chief Lisa Su told Wired that while money matters, it is not the main draw for top talent; the mission and potential impact matter more to prospective hires. She also notes that AMD staff are doing well enough with stock performance, so paying dramatically higher salaries to new hires could create fairness issues with existing workers and undermine a sense of shared purpose.
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei adds to the pushback, arguing that paying large sums cannot buy alignment with a company’s mission. He emphasizes a structured, level based approach to compensation and says trimming the pay war helps preserve culture. Meta has reportedly recruited several staffers from rivals, but Anthropic maintains a higher recent-hire retention rate of about 80 percent compared with Meta’s roughly 64 percent. Fortune asked AMD for comment on the exchange, underscoring the industry’s broader debate over how best to attract talent without sacrificing fairness or long term value.
Key Takeaways
"From a recruitment standpoint, it’s always like, Do you want to be part of our mission?"
Su describes the AMD recruitment pitch centered on mission
"What they are doing is trying to buy something that cannot be bought, and that is alignment with the mission"
Amodei on the limits of top pay to secure loyalty
"We are not willing to compromise our compensation principles"
Amodei on Anthropic's pay structure and fairness
The conversation around talent in AI is moving from splashy pay to values driven recruitment. If more firms embrace mission as a core attraction, they may build stronger, more stable cultures that endure market swings. Yet the move away from headline salaries could also invite criticism from investors who worry about talent retention and wage inequity or from employees who feel undervalued. The tension highlights a broader question: can a company win the best minds by culture and purpose as effectively as by compensation alone? In the months ahead, leadership will be tested on how well compensation policies align with performance, fairness, and public perception.
Highlights
- Mission first is a stronger magnet than a big check
- Culture is the real currency in the AI race
- You hire for beliefs not bonuses
- Fairness in pay shapes long term loyalty
Budget pressure and backlash risk in high salary competition
Nine figure pay offers to lure AI talent raise concerns about fairness, investor confidence, and public scrutiny. If compensation gaps widen, morale and governance could be affected.
The industry will weigh mission against money as the talent race evolves.
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