Jeff Bezos’s “secretive” artificial intelligence (AI) startup lab reportedly continues to build its team. A report claims that the lab has recently hired, which also reflects the ongoing talent movement across major AI companies. According to a report by The Financial Times, an AI lab operating under the code name Project Prometheus, linked to Bezos, has brought in Kyle Kosic, a co-founder of Elon Musk’s xAI, who has also worked with Sam Altman’s OpenAI. He led the infrastructure team behind Grok chatbot maker’s Colossus supercomputer before rejoining his previous employer, OpenAI, in 2024. At Prometheus, he is expected to continue working on AI infrastructure projects.
What is Jeff Bezos’s Project Prometheus AI lab and what does it do
Project Prometheus, led by Bezos and former Google executive Vikram Bajaj, has been expanding its workforce across locations, including San Francisco, London, and Zurich. The company is focusing on hiring engineers and researchers, particularly those with experience in building large-scale infrastructure.The startup is developing AI systems for physical environments, going beyond language-based tools such as chatbots and coding assistants. It also targets industrial applications, focusing on models that can understand physical systems and processes. According to a person familiar with the company’s plans, it aims to build systems trained on domain-specific data, including areas like engineering.Prometheus is also exploring a strategy to invest in companies across sectors such as aviation, architecture, and design. These investments could involve collecting data from partner companies to improve AI models. Bezos and Bajaj are reportedly working to raise large amounts of capital for a long-term investment vehicle, with one person describing it as a “Berkshire Hathaway-type holding company.”“Prometheus wants to back the progress of these industries, which will happen eventually with AI, but they don’t want it to take 10 years,” the person told FT.The company is also considering partnerships with sovereign investment funds, including those from Singapore and Gulf nations, as it builds out its long-term plans.The hiring comes amid an ongoing talent movement across AI companies. Reports indicate that all 11 co-founders of xAI have now left the company, including Manuel Kroiss and Ross Nordeen, who departed at the end of March. Some exits have reportedly been linked to concerns around management.The latest addition to Project Prometheus reflects its initiative to develop AI solutions for various industrial applications. This is especially important against the backdrop of current competition among AI companies in recruiting engineers and scientists, which results in constant job mobility within organisations.
