Ali Farhadi, one of Apple’s key machine learning executives, is departing the company to take over as CEO of the Allen Institute of Artificial Intelligence. Farhadi joined Apple in 2020 after the company acquired the startup he founded, Xnor․ai, in a deal valued at around $200 million.
The move was announced today by the Allen Institute of Artificial Intelligence, better known as AI2. This non-profit organization was founded by Paul Allen in 2014 and is focused on high-impact artificial intelligence and engineering “for the common good.”
Farhadi will serve as the CEO of AI2. It’s a return to his stomping grounds, as Xnor․ai was initially spun out of AI2’s startup incubator and then went on to be acquired by Apple in 2020 (via GeekWire).
In a statement on the move, Farhadi said:
As we face unprecedented changes in the development and usage of AI, I could not think of a better time to return to AI2 as CEO.
Today more than ever, the world needs truly open and transparent AI research that is grounded in science and a place where data, algorithms, and models are open and available to all. I believe this radical approach to openness is essential for building the next generation of AI. The world class researchers and engineers at AI2 are uniquely positioned to lead this new open and trusted approach to AI development.
As is usually the case when a startup is acquired by Apple, there aren’t many details about the transition process or where employees from Xnor․ai ended up inside Apple. Farhadi reportedly led Apple’s “next-generation Machine Learning efforts” while at the company.
Apple’s Machine Learning and AI Strategy team is led by John Giannandrea, a former Google executive who joined Apple in 2018. Since Giannandrea joined Apple, the company’s AI and ML teams have undergone multiple changes and restructurings.
Machine learning plays a vital role in many of Apple’s products, ranging from Apple Watch health features to on-device intelligence features and more. Giannandrea doesn’t speak to the press often, but in a 2020 interview, he emphasized Apple’s reliance on machine learning and how the tech allows the company to have such a firm stance on user privacy.
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