‘Intelligence really is about learning’: computer scientist Yann LeCun starts a new AI business

Yann LeCun, Meta’s chief AI scientist and Turing Award laureate, has announced the launch of his new startup, Advanced Machine Intelligence (AMI) Labs, with fundraising talks already valuing the venture at around $3.5 billion before its official debut.

Few figures in artificial intelligence carry the weight of Yann LeCun. At 65, the French computer scientist—best known as one of the “godfathers of deep learning”—is stepping away from Meta, where he served as chief AI scientist, to pursue a bold new chapter. His startup, AMI Labs, is not just another entrant in the crowded AI space. Instead, it aims to tackle what LeCun sees as the fundamental limitations of current large language models (LLMs).

“Intelligence really is about learning,” LeCun has often remarked, underscoring his belief that AI must move beyond mere text prediction to systems capable of understanding the physical world, maintaining memory, and planning complex actions.

AMI Labs’ mission is to develop “world models”—AI systems that can simulate and reason about the environment, rather than simply generating plausible sentences. According to LeCun, these models will allow machines to grasp physics, causality, and persistence, enabling them to act more like intelligent agents than autocomplete engines.

The company plans to establish its headquarters in Paris early next year, a symbolic return to LeCun’s roots and a strategic move to position France as a hub for cutting-edge AI research.

LeCun will serve as executive chairman, while Alexandre LeBrun, founder of French health-tech startup Nabla, has been appointed CEO. LeBrun’s background in applied AI for healthcare adds a practical dimension to AMI Labs’ leadership team. “Yes, AMI Labs is my new startup. I’m the Executive Chairman. And Alex LeBrun is transitioning from CEO of Nabla to CEO of AMI Labs!” LeCun confirmed on LinkedIn.

Even before its official launch, AMI Labs is seeking to raise €500 million (about $586 million) at a valuation of €3 billion (around $3.5 billion). This aggressive fundraising reflects both investor confidence in LeCun’s track record and the broader frenzy surrounding AI startups. As TechCrunch noted, “Given the kind of money that VCs are throwing at AI startups founded by world-recognized AI scientists these days, that’s not even an outlier”.

While companies like OpenAI and Anthropic focus on scaling LLMs, AMI Labs is charting a different course—prioritizing systems that can reason about the world. Nick Clegg, former Meta executive and now an investor in AMI Labs, emphasized that the startup’s goal is not “superintelligence” but practical intelligence that can make people’s lives easier.