Zuck is building an AI clone to attend meetings for him

If you cannot clone yourself, the next best thing in Silicon Valley is letting an algorithm take your 9 a.m. sync.

According to a report from the Financial Times, Meta is currently training an AI avatar of CEO Mark Zuckerberg to stand in for him at internal meetings and deliver direct feedback to employees.

Learning the boss’s mannerisms

Sources told the outlet that the model is being fed far more than just audio clips. The training data includes Zuckerberg’s visual likeness, voice, physical mannerisms, vocal tone, and years of public statements.

The stated goal is rather unusual: Meta wants employees to feel closer and more connected to the company’s founder by interacting with his digital twin.

Zuckerberg is personally involved in training the clone. Alongside this work, he reportedly spends five to 10 hours every week writing code for Meta’s AI initiatives and sitting in on technical reviews.

This is not his only synthetic self either. The Wall Street Journal reported in March that Zuckerberg has been building a personal AI agent to knock out day-to-day tasks, though that utility-focused project is said to be separate from the executive avatar.

From executive suites to creator feeds

Should the CEO experiment succeed, the Financial Times notes that Meta plans to expand the capability to creators, letting influencers build realistic AI clones of themselves.

Meta has been laying this groundwork for a while. Back in 2024, the company demonstrated creator AI personas on stage and later allowed creators to deploy AI clones that reply to comments on Instagram.

Everyday users can build custom chatbots inside Meta's apps as well, although the company started blocking teenagers from that feature earlier this year.

Why it matters

Sending an AI clone to employee check-ins sounds like peak executive absurdity, but Zuckerberg is effectively serving as the ultimate guinea pig for his company’s social roadmap.

For creators and business owners, the biggest bottleneck has always been physical hours in a day. If Zuckerberg can prove that an AI replica can deliver consistent feedback without alienating a team, Meta suddenly has a battle-tested product to sell to influencers who want to scale their personal presence.

At the same time, we think this move reveals a delicate cultural tension. An avatar trained on curated speeches and corporate tone might keep messaging on-brand, but talking to an imitation of a founder risks feeling deeply alienating. If employees realize they are being managed by an imitation of leadership, genuine corporate culture could take a serious hit.