AMD's $8.2B Bet on AI That Sees the Physical World
AMD's $8.2B Bet on AI That Sees the Physical World Fei-Fei Li, the computer vision pioneer often called the "godmother of AI." On Sept. 28, 2026, AMD agreed to acquire her startup World Labs for $8.2 billion in stock, and Li will join the chipmaker as executive vice president and chief scientist. Photo: ITU Pictures, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0). Photo from AI for Good 2017; does not depict the acquisition. Advanced Micro Devices has spent a decade trying to close the gap with Nvidia in the AI chip business. On Monday, it made the most expensive move in its history to get there — and the company it bought does not make chips at all. AMD announced on September 28 that it will acquire World Labs, the artificial intelligence startup founded by renowned researcher Fei-Fei Li, in an all-stock deal valued at $8.2 billion. The transaction is expected to close by the end of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals. As part of the agreement, Li will join AMD as an e...