{"id":1466,"date":"2026-06-18T04:08:04","date_gmt":"2026-06-18T04:08:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/americanhomejournals.com\/?p=1466"},"modified":"2026-06-18T04:08:04","modified_gmt":"2026-06-18T04:08:04","slug":"a-google-veteran-who-founded-character-ai-is-jumping-to-openai","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/americanhomejournals.com\/?p=1466","title":{"rendered":"A Google veteran who founded Character.AI is jumping to OpenAI"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Noam Shazeer, a co-lead at Gemini and the founder of Character.AI is leaving Google to join OpenAI in the latest AI talent war move.<\/p>\n

Read more Debbie Downer found a new thing to worry about: AI and data centers<\/a><\/p>\n

In an X post on Wednesday, Shazeer announced his departure and said he looks forward to working with the “exceptional team” at the ChatGPT maker.<\/p>\n

“It was a difficult decision to move on. I’m incredibly proud of the amazing team at Google and everything we’ve built together,” Shazeer wrote. “It has been an honor and a pleasure to work with all of you.”<\/p>\n

In a Wednesday X post, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said Shazeer “is one of the people I have most wanted to work with since the very beginning of openai.”<\/p>\n

\n
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noam is one of the people I have most wanted to work with since the very beginning of openai.<\/p>\n

only took 10 years.<\/p>\n

i think it will be worth the wait! https:\/\/t.co\/Hj2fjCywjv<\/p>\n

Read more The 26 best Amazon Prime benefits: Is it worth the money in 2026?<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Sam Altman (@sama) June 18, 2026<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

The Gemini co-lead joined Google in 2000 and stayed with the company, aside from a three-year period when he left to cofound the chatbot-building startup Character.AI. In 2024, the search giant rehired the founders and paid for non-exclusive rights to use the startup’s technology. Character.AI remains a separate legal entity.<\/p>\n

In 2024, The Wall Street Journal reported that Google paid Character.AI $2.7 billion for a special deal that gave Google access to the startup’s technology, and an agreement that Shazeer would have to work for Google again.<\/p>\n

Shazeer was a key part of Google’s early AI development efforts. A 2017 paper he coauthored is largely seen as the kickstarter to present-day large language models.<\/p>\n

Shazeer’s move to the IPO-bound company is the latest in a series of top-talent reshuffles at AI heavyweights. Labs, including OpenAI, Google, Meta, and Anthropic, are offering top researchers and engineers\u00a0enormous pay packages\u00a0and devising complex acqui-hire deals to incentivize them to make the jump.<\/p>\n

Read more I was preparing for retirement \u2014 then I lost $900,000 in a romance scam<\/a><\/p>\n<\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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