Bezos' Project Prometheus recruits xAI co-founder Kyle Kosic from OpenAI

Jeff Bezos has hired Kyle Kosic, a co-founder of Elon Musk's xAI, to join Project Prometheus, the billionaire's secretive artificial intelligence startup, according to sources familiar with the matter. Kosic previously worked at OpenAI before co-founding xAI in 2023. His departure marks a significant talent acquisition for Bezos as he builds out his AI operations. Project Prometheus has already assembled hundreds of employees across offices in San Francisco, London, and Zurich. The hiring underscores the intensifying competition among tech billionaires to secure top AI researchers. While Musk's xAI has focused on building large language models and raised billions in funding, Bezos has been quietly constructing his own AI capabilities through Project Prometheus. The startup is reportedly working on AI systems capable of understanding the physical world, a capability that could have applications in robotics, autonomous systems, and industrial automation. Bezos has invested heavily in AI through his family office and personal investments, including backing Anthropic, but Project Prometheus represents his most direct effort to build AI technology from the ground up. The personnel move also highlights the fluidity of AI talent, with researchers frequently moving between OpenAI, Google DeepMind, Meta, and a growing number of well-funded startups. Financial Times first reported the hiring. Neither Bezos' representatives nor Kosic responded to requests for comment.