Oct 15, 2025 - Technology

Meta poaches key Apple AI engineer

Ina Fried

Illustration of a robot hand reaching out for a glowing apple hanging from a tree branch. — Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

Meta has hired Ke Yang, an engineering exec recently tapped by Apple to lead the iPhone maker's effort to build a ChatGPT-style search experience, Axios has confirmed.

Why it matters: It's the latest sign that Meta is not done with its recruiting spree, as Axios noted earlier this week following the hiring of Thinking Machine Labs co-founder Andrew Tulloch.

Yang will be part of a unit that focuses on turning AI research into consumer products inside Meta's Superintelligence Labs, a source told Axios.
A Meta representative declined to comment and an Apple representative did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Yang's hiring was first reported by Bloomberg earlier on Wednesday.

Between the lines: Yang is leaving Apple just weeks after being tapped to lead its Answers, Knowledge and Information team, which is working to develop a more powerful Siri assistant, per Bloomberg.

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Meta poaches key Apple AI engineer

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