Facebook hires Chief Data Scientist, Google hires Technical AI Director – both let them continue with consulting and research efforts: Flexicurity for AI Stars.

When Mark Zuckerberg last year hired Xin Fu as Head of Data Science from LinkedIn, the most interesting aspect for us was that he is letting him continue to be an advisor to Didi Chuxing’s CTO and Lynk Global’s CEO.

Similarly, Google recently hired Amazon’s Senior Director for Alexa AI, Ashwin Ram, as Technical Director of AI in the CTO office, while letting him continue with his research/lecturing at the Georgia Institute of Technology. Ashwin previously was the Chief Innovation Officer for PARC.

Both examples are like the arrangement many firms have with prominent Professors of CS and ML, where they work part time in academia/consulting, and part time on AI for their new employers – get the best talent in the world and then let them continue to do the things they enjoy.

Flexicurity for AI stars, so to say, borrowing the Danish term for the combination of labour market flexibility in a dynamic economy and security for workers.