Michael Novati, a former Meta principal software engineer who spent nearly eight years at the company and earned the nickname “coding machine,” has revealed that the tech industry’s most elite engineers—particularly those working in AI—typically avoid LinkedIn entirely. In an interview on the “A Life Engineered” podcast, Novati explained that during his time at Facebook (now Meta), top engineers viewed having a LinkedIn account as a signal that someone might be job hunting, which was considered unnecessary for elite talent.
The reason these engineers can afford to stay off the platform lies in what Novati calls the “secrets of the industry”—an extensive network of highly paid, senior recruiters who maintain long-term relationships with top engineering talent. These recruiters work at leading tech companies and develop connections through activities like campus recruiting at institutions such as Stanford University, where they bond with engineers during week-long recruiting sessions. Novati referred to these connections as the “secret backroom dealings of Silicon Valley.”
The competition for AI talent has become particularly fierce in recent years. Meta has invested heavily in its Superintelligence Labs, actively poaching engineers from competitors with lucrative contracts. The recruiting efforts sometimes involve CEOs directly—Mark Zuckerberg reportedly created a personal list of top AI talent to recruit and even hand-delivered soup to a prospective employee. Similarly, one AI worker told Business Insider they received a personal call from OpenAI CEO Sam Altman pitching them to join the company, which they accepted.
Novati emphasized that these elite engineers represent a “specific case” and cautioned against interpreting his observations as career advice. “It doesn’t mean that your strategy should be: delete LinkedIn and all the offers will come,” he warned. This rarified class of engineers—those who receive special equity grants and attend exclusive dinners with executives like Jeff Bezos—deliberately avoid personal branding. “I don’t know any of those top engineers… who have big personal brands,” Novati noted. The “$100 million engineer,” as he put it, isn’t on LinkedIn with a tagline advertising their value.
Key Quotes
When I was at Facebook, the top engineers were like, ‘If you had a LinkedIn account, people would be wondering if you’re job hunting.’
Michael Novati, former Meta principal software engineer, explained the cultural attitude among elite engineers at Facebook/Meta regarding LinkedIn presence, revealing that having an account was seen as a negative signal rather than a professional necessity.
There are very senior, very highly paid recruiters that work at the top companies who have very strong long-term social relationships with a lot of top engineers.
Novati described the hidden recruiting infrastructure that makes LinkedIn unnecessary for top talent, emphasizing that personal relationships between elite recruiters and engineers form the backbone of high-level tech hiring.
The $100 million engineer is not on LinkedIn with a tagline that’s like, #100millionengineer.
Novati used this colorful example to illustrate that the most valuable engineers in tech—those worth massive compensation packages—deliberately avoid self-promotion and maintain low public profiles.
It doesn’t mean that your strategy should be: delete LinkedIn and all the offers will come.
Novati cautioned listeners against misinterpreting his observations as career advice, clarifying that the LinkedIn-avoidance phenomenon applies only to a small, elite class of engineers and not to the broader tech workforce.
Our Take
This story reveals a fascinating paradox in the AI industry: as artificial intelligence becomes more public and democratized, the humans building it operate in increasingly exclusive circles. The “secret backroom dealings” Novati describes represent a form of social capital that’s nearly impossible to replicate through online networking. What’s particularly striking is how CEO involvement in recruiting—Zuckerberg delivering soup, Altman making personal calls—demonstrates that AI talent has become a strategic asset comparable to acquiring entire companies. This hidden market for elite engineers also suggests that the AI industry’s talent concentration problem may be worse than publicly visible, with the best minds circulating among a small number of companies through channels invisible to outsiders. For the broader tech ecosystem, this raises concerns about innovation accessibility and whether transformative AI development will remain confined to a small, interconnected elite.
Why This Matters
This revelation highlights the hidden dynamics of AI talent acquisition at a time when competition for skilled engineers has reached unprecedented levels. As companies race to develop advanced AI systems, access to elite engineering talent has become a critical competitive advantage worth hundreds of millions of dollars. The existence of this “secret” recruiting network reveals a two-tiered system in tech: one for most professionals who rely on platforms like LinkedIn, and another for elite engineers who operate through exclusive relationships and personal networks.
The story underscores how AI talent scarcity is reshaping corporate recruiting strategies, with CEOs personally involved in recruitment efforts. This has significant implications for the broader tech workforce and raises questions about accessibility and opportunity in the AI industry. For companies trying to build AI capabilities, understanding these hidden recruiting channels could be crucial. For aspiring engineers, it suggests that building genuine relationships and demonstrating exceptional technical skills may matter more than online presence or personal branding when reaching the highest echelons of the field.
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Source: https://www.businessinsider.com/best-engineers-not-on-linkedin-former-meta-employee-2025-12