Barret Zoph Joins Google: AI Expert's Return to DeepMind

Barret Zoph, co-founder of Thinking Machines Lab, has joined Google as vice president of research. This move follows a turbulent year for Zoph. He left Thinking Machines after a dispute with CEO Mira Murati. Then, he departed OpenAI less than six months later. Zoph announced his decision on social media, expressing excitement to rejoin Google DeepMind, where he began his AI career. He will focus on reinforcement learning and post-training for Gemini. Google confirmed Zoph's new role, noting his expertise in these areas. Zoph had previously served as CTO at Thinking Machines and led OpenAI's efforts to sell AI products to businesses. His return to Google comes less than six months after rejoining OpenAI. He had originally left Thinking Machines in January with co-founder Luke Metz and another employee, Sam Schoenholz. All three returned to OpenAI, where they had worked before. The Wall Street Journal reported that Zoph's exit from Thinking Machines stemmed from a breakdown in his relationship with Murati. Zoph disputes the framing of his exit, stating he informed Murati of his plans to leave before she fired him. This news highlights significant movement among key figures in the AI industry.