AMD to Acquire World Labs for $8.2 Billion, Fei-Fei Li to Join as Chief Scientist

AMD announced on Monday its plan to acquire World Labs, an artificial intelligence model and research lab, for approximately $8.2 billion in an all-stock deal. The acquisition will integrate World Labs' research and model development expertise into AMD's operations, aiming to enhance its AI hardware, software, and systems capabilities.

World Labs, co-founded in 2024 by Dr. Fei-Fei Li, Justin Johnson, and Ben Mildenhall, specializes in spatial-intelligence models. These models generate, reconstruct, and simulate interactive 3D environments from various inputs, including text, images, and video. The company's technology also includes advancements in robotic learning and simulation.

Following the closure of the transaction, expected by the end of 2026 pending regulatory approvals, the World Labs team will continue its focus on AI model research. Dr. Li, a prominent AI researcher known for her work on ImageNet and often referred to as the "godmother of AI," will assume the role of executive vice president and chief scientist at AMD. She will report directly to Dr. Lisa Su, AMD's chair and CEO.

Dr. Su stated that building compute platforms for the next generation of AI requires a deep understanding of how models are evolving. She added that Dr. Li and the World Labs team bring exceptional research leadership and model expertise, which will help AMD develop the hardware, software, and systems to power future AI advancements and strengthen the open AI ecosystem. Dr. Li echoed this sentiment, noting that joining AMD will provide World Labs with the resources and engineering depth to accelerate their research and define the infrastructure needed for the next era of AI.

World Labs launched its first commercial product, Marble, in 2025. Marble is a generative 3D world model that allows users to create interactive 3D environments from prompts. The company also recently unveiled Atlas, an "omni world model" designed to handle text, images, video, and 3D data within a single architecture, capable of generating high-resolution videos with camera control.

AMD has been an investor in World Labs, participating in its initial funding round in 2024 and a subsequent $1 billion funding round in February of this year. This acquisition is AMD's latest move to expand its presence in the AI sector and compete with rivals like Nvidia, particularly in 3D AI training tools. AMD's stock closed down 3.6% on Monday afternoon following the announcement, though its shares have risen significantly this year.