Apple’s lead AI robotics researcher Zian Jhang quits after 10 years, joins Meta Robotics Studio

Apple’s lead AI researcher for robotics

Zian Jhang

has left the company to join Meta. According to a Bloomberg report, Jian Zhang has joined the

Meta Robotics Studio

on September 2. As per the report, three other AI researchers have left Apple’s in-house large language models (LLMs) team. Citing unnamed sources speaking on the condition of anonymity, the report said that these three employees include John Peebles, Nan Du and Zhao Meng. They were all part of an Apple Foundation Models team. While Pebbles and Du are joining OpenAI, Meng is reportedly heading to Anthropic.So far, Apple has lost roughly 10 employees, including chief of the company’s Foundation Models team. The group was central to the creation of the

Apple Intelligence platform

. According to Bloomberg news, the iPhone maker is now discussing internally whether to rely more on outside technology, rather than just homegrown models.

Who is Jian Zhang

Jian Zhang, a robotics researcher, led a small team of academics studying automation technology at Apple and how AI is used in it. The team has already seen some changes, as one of Zhang’s team members, Mario Srouji, left in April to lead AI products at Archer Aviation Inc.

Zhang worked with Apple for nearly 10 years. His previous works, according to his LinkedIn profile include Lecturer at Purdue University and Research Intern at Mitsubishi Electric. Zhang holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering and studied at University of Washington under student exchange program. He completed his Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Engineering from Purdue University.

Apple’s AI struggles spark doubts

According to a Financial Times report, many recruiters see the recent wave of departures from Apple as a “crisis of confidence” in the company’s AI plans. Apple is still working on a more advanced AI version of Siri, expected next year, but it stumbled when the new Apple Intelligence version of Siri was delayed and didn’t make it into iOS 18.At an employee meeting in August, Apple’s software chief Craig Federighi said the company has built a new Siri system that will bring big improvements in 2026.Apple is also exploring outside partners to boost Siri’s AI, holding talks with OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google. No final decision has been made, but the uncertainty has reportedly created friction within Apple’s AI team.