Nobel Prize AI researcher leaves Google to Anthropic

https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/biz/archives/2026/06/22/2003859496

Publish Date: 2026-06-21 12:00:00

Source Domain: www.taipeitimes.com

Google DeepMind’s vice president John Jumper, winner of the 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his work on AI, is leaving the company to join Anthropic PBC.
Jumper’s departure is significant as he has been a key member of Google’s AI coding development team, impacting the company’s competitive edge against rivals like Anthropic, OpenAI, and SpaceX in AI advancements.
Concerns have been raised among DeepMind employees and executives about the company’s lack of a clear solution for commercial AI coding tools, which has bolstered the momentum of competitors Anthropic and OpenAI.
Jumper’s departure also follows the exit of fellow Google DeepMind researcher Noam Shazeer who joined competing firm OpenAI, accentuating the rivalry among major technology firms in the AI sector.
Google DeepMind and Anthropic both confirmed Jumper’s shift, with DeepMind expressing gratitude for his contributions and Anthropic welcoming him on board.
Jumper contributed to the development of the AI model AlphaFold with DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis, which earned them the Nobel Prize and revolutionized AI’s application in science and medicine.
The broader AI talent war involves major tech firms like Meta and Alphabet, along with startups such as Anthropic and OpenAI, competing aggressively to secure elite researchers for next-gen AI systems.
Analysts suggest that smaller companies like Anthropic and OpenAI have an advantage due to less bureaucracy and a focused effort on achieving superintelligent AI over larger corporations with more bureaucratic constraints.