NEED TO KNOW<\/p>\n
Jeff Bezos will become co-CEO of an artificial intelligence startup called Project Prometheus, according to The New York Times<\/p>\n
The role marks his first major new corporate title since stepping down as CEO of Amazon in 2021<\/p>\n
He also reportedly contributed to the startup’s $6.2 billion funding<\/p>\n
Jeff Bezos<\/a> has a new billion-dollar project (and Elon Musk has thoughts).\n<\/p>\n The founder of Amazon, 61, will become co-CEO of an artificial intelligence startup called Project Prometheus, according to The New York Times<\/a>.\n<\/p>\n The new role marks his first major new corporate title since stepping down as CEO of Amazon<\/a> in 2021.\u00a0Bezos also reportedly contributed to the startup’s $6.2 billion funding.\n<\/p>\n The company is focused on AI that can help with manufacturing in computers, aerospace and automobiles, the Times reported. (A spokeswoman for Bezos did not respond to a request for comment from PEOPLE.)\n<\/p>\n Jeff Bezos attends ‘The Lord Of The Rings: The Rings Of Power’ World Premiere August 30, 2022 in London. Vik Bajaj, who previously worked on Google X, will run the company with Bezos. According to his LinkedIn<\/a>, he is co-founder and co-CEO of the startup.\n<\/p>\n Bajaj obtained his Ph.D in physical chemistry at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. His other experience include being the co-founder and CEO of Foresite Labs, a center dedicated to the intersection of AI and data science, and an adjunct professor at Stanford University School of Medicine.\n<\/p>\n Project Prometheus describes itself as<\/a> “AI for the physical economy.”\n<\/p>\n Citing sources, the Times reported that the company has hired about 100 employees, including former workers from OpenAI, DeepMind and Meta.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n Musk, another tech titan with his own interests in artificial intelligence, weighed in on Bezos’ career move on his X platform, where he often posts. He jokingly called<\/a> Bezos a “copy [cat].”\n<\/p>\n After leaving Amazon, Bezos also founded the space technology company Blue Origin<\/a>. which has made headlines for its civilian flights including with celebrities such as Katy Perry<\/a>, Bezos\u2019s wife, Lauren S\u00e1nchez Bezos<\/a>, and others like billionaire Justin Sun<\/a>.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n The Amazon founder spoke optimistically about the AI industry at Italian Tech Week in October while acknowledging challenges ahead for the disruptive industry, according CNBC<\/a>.\n<\/p>\n He said then that AI is currently in an “industrial bubble.”\n<\/p>\n
\nKarwai Tang\/WireImage<\/p>\n