Apple loses another AI executive to Meta as talent churn hits AI push
In a move that underscores the intense competition for AI talent, Apple has again seen a key leader depart for Meta. Ke Yang, the Apple executive charged with steering the iPhone maker’s AI-driven web search efforts, is reportedly heading to Meta, according to a Bloomberg report. Yang’s exit adds to a growing list of departures from Apple’s AI and machine learning (AIML) group, a trend that has caught the attention of analysts and rivals alike as the company ramps up its work on a major Siri revamp set for March.
The latest switch follows Rouming Pang, Apple’s former head of AI models, who left for Meta earlier this year. Roughly a dozen members of Apple’s AIML team have departed in recent months, with some among them joining Meta’s newly formed Superintelligence Labs. The human capital shift comes at a delicate time for Apple, which has positioned AI as a strategic pillar for its future products and services.
What Yang’s move means for Apple and the Siri revamp
Yang’s recent responsibilities included overseeing the Answers, Knowledge, and Information (AKI) team, a group tasked with enhancing Siri’s ability to retrieve information from the web. The goal is to give Siri a more competitive edge in the AI search landscape, where rivals such as OpenAI, Perplexity, and Google are investing heavily in real-time data access and natural language capabilities. Bloomberg’s report suggests that Yang’s departure could complicate Apple’s timeline for the March Siri refresh, which has been pitched as a major upgrade to how the assistant integrates web data and personal information for complex tasks.
With the AI talent pool tightening, Apple is contending with a broader industry pattern: top AI engineers and researchers frequently move between Big Tech firms in search of ambitious projects, higher compensation, or greater autonomy. Meta, in particular, has been expanding its AI ambitions, funneling resources into products and labs designed to push the frontiers of conversational agents, enterprise AI tools, and more. The exits at Apple are a tangible sign of the fierce competition shaping the talent market in AI development today.
How this talent shift could affect Apple’s strategy
Apple’s strategy in AI and search hinges on a blend of on-device privacy, sophisticated data access, and seamless user experiences. The AKI team’s mandate—to enable Siri to pull information from the web—signals Apple’s intent to offer a more capable, real-time assistant that can answer questions with broader context. When leadership and high-caliber engineers depart, teams can experience knowledge gaps, slower iteration cycles, and a need to recruit and onboard replacements who share a similar strategic mindset.
From a market perspective, the Siri update is a visible signal of Apple’s attempt to compete with Google’s AI-powered search integration and with specialized AI startups pushing into consumer applications. Meta’s interest in broadening AI capabilities also implies a broader industry trend: conversational AI will increasingly intersect with search, personal data usage, and enterprise-grade AI tools. The question for Apple is whether it can retain a cohesive AI vision while navigating leadership changes and talent transitions.
What’s next for Apple, Meta, and the broader AI race
Bloomberg’s reporting that more AIML team members may depart in the coming months adds a layer of uncertainty to Apple’s near-term plans. The company may need to accelerate cross-team collaboration, offer compelling incentives to current researchers, or reallocate responsibilities to stabilize the AKI initiative as it approaches its intended March milestone. For Meta, the move reinforces its ambition to recruit top AI leadership from major tech players and to harness a pipeline of experienced engineers who can contribute to a variety of projects, from Superintelligence Labs to consumer AI experiences.
As the industry watches these talent dynamics, the broader AI landscape remains on a trajectory of rapid evolution. The competition isn’t only about who can build the slickest chatbot or most accurate web search; it’s about who can attract and retain the people who design, test, and deploy these systems responsibly and effectively. Apple’s ongoing challenge will be to maintain momentum on AI initiatives while navigating the headwinds of leadership turnover and the pressure to deliver a Siri revamp that resonates with users and stands up to rivals.
TechCrunch has reached out to Apple and Meta for comment on the leadership moves and the broader impact on their AI programs. In the meantime, the industry will be watching closely to see whether Apple can steady its AI ship in time for March and whether Meta can leverage this staffing shift to accelerate its own AI roadmap.
