Thinking Machines Lab co-founder Barret Zoph joins Google

Barret Zoph, co-founder of artificial intelligence startup Thinking Machines Lab, will assume a new role at Google DeepMind as Vice President of Research, according to the startup's co-founder on Wednesday. Prior to joining Google DeepMind, Zoph served as Vice President of Research at OpenAI. During his time at OpenAI, Zoph took a temporary position at his former employer, OpenAI, following his departure from Thinking Machines earlier this year, as per his LinkedIn profile.

The announcement marks the latest in a series of AI-related personnel changes at Google, which includes DeepMind CEO Dennis Hassabis stepping down earlier this month. Zoph spent six years with Google as a research scientist at Google Brain, which later merged with DeepMind to form Google DeepMind in 2023. Alphabet revealed during an all-hands meeting on August 6 that some teams were transitioning from DeepMind into corporate Google, according to Reuters, citing two sources.