Google appoints former Character.AI CEO to co-lead Gemini
What's the story
Google has announced the appointment of Noam Shazeer, former CEO of Character. AI and a seasoned Google researcher, as the co-leader of its primary artificial intelligence (AI) project. Shazeer will serve as a technical lead on Gemini, alongside existing co-leaders Jeff Dean and Oriol Vinyals. Gemini represents a series of AI models being developed by DeepMind, Google's dedicated AI division. These models are being incorporated into various products including Search and Pixel smartphones.
Rejoining
Shazeer's return to Google
Shazeer recently returned to Google from Character. AI, a chatbot company he established in 2021. The tech giant reportedly spent billions to facilitate his return and secure a licensing agreement with Character. AI, as reported by Reuters. In response to the memo announcing his new role, Shazeer expressed his excitement about rejoining what he referred to as "the best team on Earth building the most valuable technology on Earth."
Career history
Previous contributions and Character. AI's valuation
Shazeer first joined Google in 2000, two years after its inception. He co-authored a groundbreaking 2017 research paper that sparked the current AI boom. His start-up, Character. AI, leverages the technical advancements from this paper. The company has raised $193 million and was valued at $1 billion last year by venture capitalists.
Tech talent acquisition
Google's strategy mirrors Amazon and Microsoft
Google's strategy of bringing Shazeer back mirrors similar moves by Amazon and Microsoft to secure top talent from AI start-ups. This approach is being adopted at a time when Big Tech companies are under increased regulatory scrutiny. Despite not being acquisitions, these deals are still under review by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).