🦾 Meta Builds AI Superteam

The Street

🚀A New Era for Meta’s AI Push

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is planning to invest $14 billion on data labeling startup Scale AI. Translation? He’s calling in reinforcements to get Meta’s AI ambitions across the finish line.

Meta’s been trying to convince the world it’s serious about AI. It’s open-sourcing models. It’s building chips. It’s releasing AI assistants and investing heavily in data centers. But behind the scenes? A pivot from research and into products, talent churn, and slowing progress.

That’s where the new partnership with Scale AI comes in. But Meta’s not really buying the company. He’s buying Alexandr Wang, Scale AI’s CEO, to help steer Meta’s AI efforts.

Scale AI has provided labeled training data for an estimated 70% of all AI models, including those used in self-driving cars, which has quietly cemented it as a foundational player in the industry.

🤔 Wang will reportedly lead a new research lab inside Meta, but it’s hard to imagine a founder that ambitious putting his own company on pause to play lieutenant.

How Meta Ended Up Trailing the Cool Kids:

• Their models are just ok - their latest, Llama 4, landed like a lead balloon and Behemoth keeps getting delayed for being just as meh as its siblings.

• They’ve shifted focus to products over research - this sounds smart, until you realize the researchers who built their foundation have left the company.

• Open-source isn’t enough - Meta bet that giving its models away would win hearts and market share. Turns out, open weights don’t build killer products or loyalty.

Meta’s comeback playbook? Write a very large check and recruit a “wartime CEO” with the eye on the bigger mission: keep the U.S. ahead of global rivals.

This is Meta’s official “we need help” moment, and their best hope might be a 28-year-old who's usually the one calling the shots. It’s a reminder that even tech giants struggle to build world-class AI. The next question is: how long will Wang play lieutenant?

💡How To AI: Train Smarter, Not Harder—with a Chatbot

It’s June, which means you’re officially about 100 days late for that summer bod. Can’t justify a personal trainer? Good news, your favorite, free chatbot is the trainer you never knew you had! You bring the will, AI brings the way - with a plan customized to your life, schedule, and goals.

How to use it:

• 🎯 Set your goals: “Help me build muscle” or “I want to lose 10 lbs in 2 months.”

• 🏠 Share your setup: “I only have dumbbells and 20 minutes a day.”

• 🍽️ Add nutrition: “Make me a high-protein meal plan using what’s in my fridge.”

• 🔁 Ask for variety: “Switch up my routine every week so I don’t get bored.”

• 📅 Stay accountable: “Send me daily check-ins or motivational messages.”

What makes AI special is how deeply personalized and flexible it can be.

• Heading to a hotel gym on 5 hours of sleep with no breakfast? Just ask: “What’s the best workout for me right now?”

• Or “I have lower back pain but still want to work out, what are some core or leg exercises that won’t strain my back?”

The main catch with the free, chatbot route? You’re the one in charge. AI can write the perfect plan, but until we get AI robots that show up at your door and drag you off the couch, the follow-through is still on you.

🧠 Stay Smart, Stay Informed

You already read the Neural Net to make sense of AI without the hype. Why stop there? For the rest of your world—finance, business, markets—1440 delivers news the same way we do: no noise, no nonsense, just the facts.

Stay In The Business Know with 1440

Are you looking for easy breakdowns and knowledge deep dives on the latest key concepts to help you understand business and finance topics? Finance news doesn’t have to be confusing. 1440’s weekly newsletter explains markets, policy, and investing in plain English—complete with charts, context, and links to learn more.

Knowledge Starts Here

Heard in the Server Room

Disney, Universal Shout “CUT!” To Midjourney

Disney and Universal are teaming up for an ambitious collab: suing the pants off Midjourney for swiping their iconic characters like Darth Vader and the Minions without permission. The studios, fed up with what they call a “bottomless pit of plagiarism,” are seeking damages and a legal block on further copyright infringement. While some Hollywood players are optimistic and cautiously flirting with AI tools, most are still side-eyeing licensing deals over fears of losing control of their IP.

AI Startups Dominate CNBC’s Disruptor List

CNBC just dropped its 2025 Disruptor 50 list, spotlighting startups that are shaking up industries with cutting-edge tech—and AI has a heavy presence. The top five companies, led by defense tech newcomer Anduril, are valued at nearly $500 billion, more than most past lists combined. With 20 first-timers and growing representation in sectors like healthcare, agriculture, and transportation, the list reflects how GenAI is transforming entire industries, not just chatbots.

News Publishers Pivot From Clicks To Connections As Search Traffic Declines

AI is shaking up the news game and publishers are adapting fast. As tools like Google’s AI Overviews and AI Mode become more prevalent, search traffic to sites like HuffPost, The Washington Post, and Business Insider has dropped by over 50%. In response, media companies are leaning into newsletters, events, apps, and loyal audiences to build stronger, more direct relationships. Instead of chasing clicks, they’re taking a page out of the Neural Net’s play book—focusing on creating value readers actively seek out.

📈 The AI Sleeper Stocks You Need To Know

AI stocks have been on a heater over the past year, and investors are racing to grab a slice of the action. Big names like Palantir have soaked up most of the spotlight, with sky-high valuations that haven’t flinched even amid market shakeups and global tariffs in the mix.

But the AI boom isn’t just a Big Tech party. A handful of under-the-radar players have also posted eye-popping returns. Nerdwallet compiled the seven best-performing AI stocks from two major indexes, updated weekly and ranked by one-year performance.

AI stocks generally fall into three categories: big tech companies investing in AI, smaller, “experimental” companies focused on building AI tools, and hardware companies powering it all with chips and infrastructure.

How many of these companies do you recognize? They’re not household names yet, but they’re on track to be.

If you had invested $100 into each of these 7 AI companies last year, your $700 total investment would now be worth $4,721 - a 574% return. Not bad for the AI hype! 💸