Google DeepMind scientist John Jumper to join AI rival Anthropic

John Jumper, a senior research scientist at Google DeepMind and a Nobel laureate, announced Friday he will leave the tech giant to join AI startup Anthropic. This marks the latest high-profile departure from Alphabet's AI research division, underscoring the fierce competition for elite talent in the rapidly advancing field of artificial intelligence.

Jumper, who shared a Nobel Prize with Google's Demis Hassabis in 2024, is widely recognized as the co-creator of AlphaFold. This groundbreaking AI system has predicted the structures of over 200 million proteins, significantly accelerating biological and medical research by potentially saving years of work.

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After nearly nine years, I have decided to leave Google DeepMind and join Anthropic.

"After nearly nine years, I have decided to leave Google DeepMind and join Anthropic," Jumper stated in a post on X. His move comes just days after Noam Shazeer, a vice president of engineering at Google and co-lead of its Gemini AI models, announced his departure to join OpenAI. This talent drain illustrates the intense "war for talent" among major technology firms like Meta and Alphabet, as well as AI pioneers such as Anthropic and OpenAI, all racing to develop next-generation AI systems.

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What we achieved with AlphaFold changed the world, and showed the field what was possible with AI for science and medicine, lighting the way for how AI can benefit humanity.

Demis Hassabis acknowledged Jumper's contributions, stating on X, "What we achieved with AlphaFold changed the world, and showed the field what was possible with AI for science and medicine, lighting the way for how AI can benefit humanity." Jumper, who held the title of VP, Engineering Fellow at Google DeepMind, is moving to Anthropic at a time when the startup is engaged in significant legal and regulatory battles with the U.S. government.

A Google DeepMind spokesperson confirmed Jumper's departure, saying, "We are grateful for John’s significant contributions to Google DeepMind’s work in advancing science and AI. We wish him well in his next chapter." Anthropic is scheduled to host a science event on June 30, but the company had no immediate comment regarding Jumper's new role.

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We are grateful for John’s significant contributions to Google DeepMind’s work in advancing science and AI. We wish him well in his next chapter.