![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.midytech.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/73351099c4b1b12f97ed08ec38577f6b_interlace1.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\nThe move comes shortly after Vibes<\/em>\u2014a video app led by Friedman\u2014was quickly overtaken by competitors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Reassigning Shah, who boasts extensive product management experience, to support Friedman is clearly intended to accelerate the more mature implementation of Meta AI\u2019s products.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Shah is a 10-year veteran of Meta with a distinguished track record. As a long-serving deputy to Mark Zuckerberg, he has earned Zuckerberg\u2019s deep trust and reliance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Shah joined Instagram (then part of Facebook) in 2015 and served as Instagram\u2019s Head of Product from 2018 to 2021. During his tenure leading Instagram, he focused on product strategy and user experience, spearheading the direction of key initiatives such as Instagram Shopping (e-commerce) and Reels (short-form videos).<\/p>\n\n\n\n In 2021, when Facebook pivoted to the metaverse and rebranded as Meta, Zuckerberg appointed Shah as Head of Meta\u2019s Metaverse division, tasking him with leading the development of Horizon Worlds, a virtual world platform.<\/p>\n\n\n Friedman stated that his team will now focus on building flagship AI products like Meta AI, while business units such as Instagram and WhatsApp will leverage the company\u2019s models to develop various AI-driven experiences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Commenting on the personnel adjustment, Friedman said, \u201cWe need to be not just an AI team, but an AI company. Shah will play a critical role in driving collaboration models, defining integration strategies, and ensuring scalable success.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n This restructuring is also closely tied to Friedman\u2019s recent management performance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To solidify its position in the generative AI space, Meta has been aggressively recruiting AI talent since 2025. Particularly after the underwhelming launch of its Llama 4 large language model in April, Zuckerberg\u2014dissatisfied with the pace of AI progress\u2014personally oversaw the reorganization of Meta\u2019s AI team in June. In a rare move, he brought in external executives to establish the Meta Superintelligence Labs (MSL).<\/p>\n\n\n\n It was during this restructuring that Zuckerberg hired Alexander Wang, founder of Scale AI, to lead Meta Superintelligence Labs\u2014including its elite \u201cTBD Lab,\u201d which focuses on cutting-edge AI model research and development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Friedman joined Meta during this period to lead the AI product team under Alexander Wang. Prior to this role, Friedman was a well-known Silicon Valley investor and former head of GitHub.<\/p>\n\n\n\n According to insiders, Friedman rushed to launch Vibes<\/em> in September\u2014an app generating short videos entirely with AI\u2014to beat OpenAI\u2019s new video app to market.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To speed up Vibes<\/em>\u2019 launch, Meta signed a multi-year, billion-dollar technical collaboration agreement with startup Midjourney. Notably, Friedman had served as a long-term advisor to Midjourney.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Friedman also pushed his team to integrate Midjourney\u2019s technology into Meta AI to support Vibes<\/em>, abandoning the original plan to use Meta\u2019s in-house developed video models. Additionally, Meta incorporated technology from Black Forest Labs, a German startup, to further accelerate the app\u2019s release.<\/p>\n\n\n\n While Vibes<\/em>\u2014led by Friedman\u2014initially boosted Meta AI\u2019s user growth, its momentum was quickly overshadowed by the launch of OpenAI\u2019s AI video app.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Although a Meta spokesperson noted that Friedman\u2019s \u201cfast start has been impressive\u201d and that he \u201cattracted some of the company\u2019s top talent to the team,\u201d the lackluster performance of Vibes<\/em> and growing internal dissatisfaction with Friedman\u2019s management style likely played a key role in Zuckerberg\u2019s decision to assign Shah to support Friedman in managing AI products.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For key roles, Zuckerberg has long favored promoting internal veterans, as they understand the company\u2019s systems and can execute his strategies more quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Another crucial factor behind Shah\u2019s appointment is his strong background in product management. He previously led Instagram\u2019s product strategy and, after 2021, oversaw Meta\u2019s Metaverse division\u2014leading the development of Horizon Worlds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Moreover, with years of experience at Meta, Shah\u2019s addition is expected to facilitate effective communication and alignment between Friedman (an external hire), Zuckerberg, and various departments\u2014helping Meta better implement its AI product strategy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Friedman also values Shah\u2019s technical background and influence within Meta. He praised Shah for being \u201cskilled at solving complex technical problems\u201d and emphasized that Shah \u201chas deep connections across the company.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n In 2021, when Zuckerberg announced Facebook\u2019s pivot to the metaverse and rebranded the company as Meta, Shah was appointed head of Meta\u2019s Metaverse division, becoming the leader of the company\u2019s new strategic business. However, due to technical bottlenecks, low consumer interest, and the rapid rise of AI, the metaverse eventually took a backseat to Meta\u2019s emerging AI strategy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Shah\u2019s transfer to the AI division reaffirms Zuckerberg\u2019s trust in this long-serving executive. In his new role, Shah will oversee product management and the integration of Meta\u2019s AI technology into Reality Labs\u2014the division responsible for metaverse development and new products like smart glasses. Zuckerberg has previously identified Reality Labs as a key pillar for realizing his \u201csuperintelligence\u201d strategy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Shah stated that AI and the metaverse are closely interconnected, adding that he will continue to build bridges between MSL and Reality Labs to enable Meta to deliver personalized superintelligence services across devices to billions of users.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Alongside Shah\u2019s reassignment, Meta also promoted two executives from its Metaverse division: Gabriel Aul and Ryan Cairns will now lead Meta\u2019s metaverse business, focusing on virtual reality (VR) and mobile devices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gabriel Aul will take over as Head of the Metaverse Product Group; he previously oversaw product work for Meta Horizon, a social metaverse application. Ryan Cairns will continue to lead Quest hardware and the Meta Horizon OS operating system, reporting directly to Andrew Bosworth, Meta\u2019s Chief Technology Officer (CTO).<\/p>\n\n\n Bosworth emphasized that the metaverse remains a key focus for Meta and that its priority has not changed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Led by Zuckerberg, Meta has ramped up its efforts in AI at a breakneck pace this year. Earlier in the year, Zuckerberg announced plans to invest heavily in building \u201cthe most advanced AI technology,\u201d adding that he would rather overspend than underinvest in AI. Zuckerberg believes that the real risk for Meta lies not in being too aggressive, but in being not aggressive enough<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, one consequence of this rapid expansion is ongoing turbulence from repeated reorganizations within Meta\u2019s AI team. Since the establishment of the Superintelligence Lab in late June, Meta has restructured its AI division four times in just a few months\u2014a period marked by intense internal friction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In a recent internal upheaval at Meta AI, Yann LeCun, Meta\u2019s Chief AI Scientist, even considered resigning due to dissatisfaction with a Meta policy regarding its FAIR (Facebook AI Research) lab, triggering a temporary uproar within the AI team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Last week, Meta\u2019s AI division cut approximately 600 jobs\u2014including that of Yuandong Tian, a FAIR Research Science Director who had served Meta for over a decade. Alexander Wang described the layoffs as an effort to \u201cspeed up decision-making and execution.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The recent turbulence in Meta\u2019s AI team is a growing pain as the company rushes to assemble a competitive team capable of catching up to leaders like OpenAI and Google. Simply throwing money at talent recruitment is insufficient to build a competitive team; more importantly, the effective integration of new and existing talent is key to unlocking the organization\u2019s full potential.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The pairing of Friedman and Shah represents a critical attempt by Zuckerberg to drive the integration of new (external hires) and existing (internal veterans) talent. This combination may help Meta AI pursue rapid growth while maintaining greater stability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For Zuckerberg, ensuring that talent truly integrates into Meta is even more important than lavishing funds on recruitment. This latest personnel shakeup could mark a turning point for Meta\u2014shifting from a phase of \u201cheadlong AI expansion\u201d to one of \u201corganizational integration.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Recently, Meta announced a sig…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":437,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,4],"tags":[24,50,16,58],"class_list":["post-435","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-companies","category-policy-impact","tag-ai","tag-meta","tag-technology","tag-zuckerberg"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.midytech.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/435","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.midytech.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.midytech.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.midytech.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.midytech.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=435"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.midytech.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/435\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":455,"href":"https:\/\/www.midytech.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/435\/revisions\/455"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.midytech.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/437"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.midytech.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=435"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.midytech.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=435"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.midytech.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=435"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.midytech.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/fe87450e4d0b64f7a189a706929150c8_interlace1.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\nNat Friedman: A Newcomer to Meta \u2013 Quick Start, but Vibes<\/em> Stumbles<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
A Metaverse Veteran Steps In: Product Expertise + Extensive Connections<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.midytech.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/2e09630c6053780063cf0fb5bf3fa3dc_interlace1-1024x682.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\nTurmoil Behind the Frenzy<\/h2>\n\n\n\n