Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) has agreed to acquire World Labs, an AI research startup founded by computer scientist Dr. Fei-Fei Li, in an all-stock transaction valued at approximately $8.2 billion. The deal is one of AMD’s largest acquisitions and is intended to strengthen its position in the AI sector against rivals such as Nvidia.
The deal is expected to close by the end of 2026. After completion, Dr. Li, known as a “godmother of AI,” will join AMD as executive vice president and chief scientist, reporting directly to CEO Dr. Lisa Su.
World Labs specializes in spatial intelligence and “world models,” which generate and simulate interactive 3D environments from various inputs. AMD expects the expertise to offer deeper insight into emerging AI workloads, particularly in robotics and physical AI, and help guide future hardware and software development.