Yann LeCun, a founding figure in modern artificial intelligence and a key driver at Meta Platforms (META. O), announced on Wednesday that he plans to leave the company by the end of the year. During his 12-year tenure at Meta, LeCun was a central figure in advancing AI technologies, serving as Chief AI Scientist and steering major innovations in the field. He notably developed an early version of an unsupervised learning algorithm, which has significantly influenced many AI applications today, helping establish Meta as a leader in deep learning and artificial intelligence. At 65, LeCun is set to begin a new phase of his career, though he stressed he will maintain "continued interest and support" for Meta’s AI research through its subsidiary, AMI. This ongoing partnership aims to foster the continuous growth and innovation of AI technologies within Meta. In a statement, he described the creation of FAIR (Facebook AI Research) as his proudest achievement, emphasizing the profound impact FAIR has had on Meta’s AI capabilities and the wider scientific community. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and CTO Andrew Bosworth expressed their deep appreciation for LeCun’s invaluable contributions and visionary leadership, underscoring the foundational role he played in shaping Meta’s AI research landscape. LeCun is widely recognized as one of the "godfathers" of deep learning alongside Geoffrey Hinton and Yoshua Bengio.

His pioneering work on neural networks has greatly influenced today’s AI technologies, including image recognition and natural language processing. Throughout his distinguished career, LeCun has authored numerous seminal papers and received prestigious awards in AI. His commitment to advancing artificial intelligence has not only propelled Meta to the forefront of technological innovation but also inspired a generation of AI researchers globally. As he prepares to depart Meta, the AI community eagerly anticipates his future initiatives. LeCun’s legacy at Meta and his contributions to machine learning science stand as a testament to his substantial impact on the field. While his departure marks the close of an era for Meta, it also heralds new opportunities and advances in AI research.