AMD announced on September 28, 2026, that it had reached a definitive agreement to acquire World Labs in an all-stock transaction valued at approximately $8.2 billion. AMD expected the deal to close by the end of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals and customary conditions.
What World Labs researches
World Labs is an AI research lab led by co-founder and CEO Fei-Fei Li. Its spatial-intelligence models generate, reconstruct and simulate interactive 3D environments from text, images and video. The company also develops technology for robotic learning and simulation.
Spatial intelligence, in this context, means building and working with models of three-dimensional environments—not just processing language. World Labs’ work spans the creation and reconstruction of those environments as well as simulation.
Why AMD says the research matters to its AI roadmap
AMD says knowledge of how AI models and their workloads are evolving could help guide its future hardware, software and systems. That is the company’s stated rationale for the agreement; the planned combination has not yet produced those roadmap outcomes.
Fei-Fei Li’s planned role at AMD
After the deal closes, Li is to join AMD as executive vice president and chief scientist, reporting to AMD chair and CEO Lisa Su. AMD says the World Labs team will continue to focus on AI model research.
