Google DeepMind engineer resigns over 'far too rapid' AI development
What's the story
Robert O'Callahan, a Google DeepMind engineer from Auckland, has resigned over concerns about the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI). In his resignation email shared on his blog this week, O'Callahan said that the pace of AI development is "far too rapid." He also expressed concerns that his team's goal of making AI "much cheaper and lower-latency" isn't beneficial for people at this time.
AI risk
Not all doom predictions resonate with him
Despite his concerns, O'Callahan isn't fully convinced about the extinction warnings surrounding AI.
He said he is "not convinced the chance of ASI doom is 100%," referring to artificial superintelligence.
While he acknowledges that the risk is "real but uncertain," he believes pursuing ASI in the near future is "inherently irresponsible."
This nuanced view separates him from both extreme advocates and critics of AI development.
Job impact
His work's impact on AI advancement worried him
O'Callahan didn't directly build AI models but worked on tools for hardware chip design.
Initially, he thought his work was relatively harmless. But over time, he realized its main impact would be faster design of a new breed of AI chips, making AI cheaper, faster, and more capable.
This realization contributed to his decision to leave Google DeepMind.
Departure details
Google's AI chips to be tested in space
O'Callahan's resignation comes as Google announced plans to test its AI chips in space.
The project, dubbed Suncatcher, involves a prototype satellite carrying Google's Trillium TPUs flying on SpaceX's Transporter-18 rideshare mission.
The long-term goal is to see if orbit could host AI data centers, given solar panels there can generate up to eight times more power than on Earth.
Next steps
He believes regulation is needed for the industry
O'Callahan, a Christian and church elder in Auckland, said he won't ignore the impact of his work.
He joins a list of researchers who have left top AI labs over safety concerns.
However, unlike some others, he hasn't seen any hard evidence that insiders are hyping AI risk to boost stock prices or shut out rivals.
He believes regulation is "desperately needed" for the industry.
Twitter Post
Take a look at O'Callahan's post
I resigned from Google today.
— Robert O'Callahan (@rocallahan) September 25, 2026
I enjoyed my work and loved the people, but my GDM team was working on a new generation of chips to make AI much faster and cheaper, and I think AI is already progressing too fast, so I had to quit.