World Labs and SSI show opposite paths for elite AI talent

[AIcash]

Two prominent AI labs illustrate how differently ambition can play out among elite researchers.

World Labs, founded by Fei-Fei Li, began with modest commercial expectations but has since released a world-generating model and a market-facing product. Growing demand from gaming and visual effects has pushed the company toward what looks like a serious commercial contender.

At the other end is Safe Superintelligence, founded by former OpenAI chief scientist Ilya Sutskever. The lab has resisted commercialization entirely, focusing on long-term research despite raising $3 billion. Still, Sutskever has acknowledged that breakthroughs — or delays — could eventually force a rapid shift toward real-world deployment.

[kevin1]

ssi raising $3b and saying “no commercialization” is such ilya energy