Thinking Machines Lab Loses Co-Founders to OpenAI Just Months After Launch
Mira Murati’s startup is facing a leadership shift as two co-founders return to OpenAI after a brief stint.
San Francisco: Mira Murati’s startup, Thinking Machines Lab, is saying goodbye to two of its co-founders. Barret Zoph, the co-founder and CTO, is returning to OpenAI. Another co-founder, Luke Metz, is also going back to OpenAI.
On social media, Murati shared the news about Zoph’s departure. She expressed excitement for Soumith Chintala to take over as the new CTO. Chintala has been an important part of their team and has worked in AI for over ten years. Murati is looking forward to his leadership.
Just a short time later, OpenAI’s CEO, Fidji Simo, confirmed Zoph’s return. He welcomed Zoph, Metz, and another team member, Sam Schoenholz, back to OpenAI. Simo said this move had been planned for weeks and was exciting for the company.
Previously, Zoph worked at OpenAI as VP of research. He also spent six years at Google. Murati, the former CTO of OpenAI, started Thinking Machines with Zoph and Metz. Since then, the startup has raised $2 billion, making it valued at $12 billion.
Reports suggest Zoph’s departure from Thinking Machines wasn’t smooth, as Murati didn’t share many details about it. While it’s common for talent to shift in the AI industry, losing two co-founders after such a short time may be a setback for the startup.
Thinking Machines has also lost another co-founder, Andrew Tulloch, who joined Meta in October. OpenAI has seen others leave for new ventures, such as John Schulman, who left to join Thinking Machines as chief scientist.