AMD agrees to acquire World Labs for $8.2 billion

Advanced Micro Devices has agreed to acquire World Labs, an artificial intelligence startup founded by researcher Fei-Fei Li, in an $8.2 billion all-stock transaction expected to close by the end of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals, the companies said Monday. The proposed acquisition would give AMD access to World Labs’ research and models for AI systems designed to understand and simulate the physical world. The transaction has been announced but has not closed; regulatory approval remains a condition, and the companies have not reported that approvals have been granted. World Labs develops AI models that generate, reconstruct or simulate interactive three-dimensional environments. The company has described potential applications in robotics, simulation, design and other fields involving real-world settings. The reports describe these uses as potential applications, not as demonstrated results. AMD said the research could provide insight into emerging AI workloads and help inform its technology roadmaps across hardware, software and systems.