Meta AI head shares message for Google Cloud head, who announced he is joining ScaleAI; the company Alexandr Wang founded, but left to head Mark Zuckerberg’s AI division

Scale AI has appointed Francis deSouza, Google Cloud’s chief operating officer, as its new CEO. He replaces interim chief executive Jason Droege, who had led the company since founder Alexandr Wang departed in 2025 to join Meta after its $14.3 billion investment in the startup. Meta AI head Alexandr Wang congratulated deSouza on joining ScaleAI. According to a report by Axios, this new hire signals Scale’s ambition to position itself as an enterprise AI company rather than a data management firm. DeSouza, who also served as president of Google Cloud’s security products business, said he was drawn to Scale because enterprises need help turning AI hype into measurable business results. “Organizations understand the value and the potential of AI, but they want help realizing that potential and deploying AI responsibly and reliably,” he told Axios.