OpenAI co-founder quits, joins rival company

John Schulman, one of the co-founders of OpenAI, has left the company to join rival AI startup Anthropic.

A spokesperson shared tatement about Schulman: “We’re grateful for John’s contributions as a founding team member at OpenAI and his dedicated efforts in advancing alignment research. His passion and hard work have established a strong foundation that will inspire and support future innovations at OpenAI and the broader field.”

Schulman also posted about the decision on X today.

“I’ve decided to pursue this goal at Anthropic, where I believe I can gain new perspectives and do research alongside people deeply engaged with the topics I’m most interested in,” Schulman said. “I am confident that OpenAI and the teams I was part of will continue to thrive without me.”

In addition, OpenAI president and co-founder Greg Brockman is taking an extended leave — through the end of the year — after nine years at the company to “relax and recharge,” the company confirmed.

I’m taking a sabbatical through end of year. First time to relax since co-founding OpenAI 9 years ago. The mission is far from complete; we still have a safe AGI to build.

— Greg Brockman (@gdb) August 6, 2024

Peter Deng, a product manager who joined OpenAI last year after leading products at Meta, Uber, and Airtable, also exited some time ago.