Meta acquires voice AI startup PlayAI

Meta has completed the purchase of PlayAI, a startup specializing in voice technologies, Bloomberg reports, citing internal company documents.

According to this data, all PlayAI employees will join Meta this week and work under the leadership of Johan Schalkwyk, who previously headed another voice AI startup, Sesame AI.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. A Meta spokesperson confirmed the acquisition but declined to comment on the details. The company said the PlayAI team, which developed the natural voice platform, fits into Meta’s plans to develop voice AI characters, audio content, and tools for wearables.

Meta has declared artificial intelligence a top priority for 2025. The company is actively investing in infrastructure, including processors and data centers, and attracting top engineers.

The other day, CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced a large-scale reorganization within the new Meta Superintelligence Labs division, headed by former Scale AI director Alexander Wang.

In addition, Meta recently lured a top Apple manager who was responsible for artificial intelligence models at the Cupertino company and led the Apple Foundation Models team.

Meta was also criticized by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman for poaching key researchers from his company. In a statement, Altman called Meta's actions "disgraceful" and warned that their strategy could lead to "deep cultural problems."