Former OpenAI CTO Mira Murati’s AI startup, Thinking Machines Lab, is undergoing a significant leadership reshuffle, with two of its co-founders leaving the company and rejoining OpenAI.
Mira Murati announced that Barret Zoph, co-founder and CTO of Thinking Machines Lab, has exited the company. At the same time, she confirmed that Soumith Chintala will step into the role of CTO, citing his long-standing contributions to the AI field and his impact within the team.
The announcement did not initially reference any additional departures.
OpenAI confirms multiple returns
Less than an hour later, OpenAI confirmed that Barret Zoph would be returning to the company, alongside Luke Metz and Sam Schoenholz. All three had previously worked at OpenAI before joining Thinking Machines Lab.
Luke Metz was also a co-founder of and had spent several years on OpenAI’s technical staff. Sam Schoenholz, another former OpenAI researcher, had most recently been affiliated with Thinking Machines Lab.
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Background of the founders
Barret Zoph previously served as VP of Research at OpenAI and earlier spent six years at Google as a research scientist. Mira Murati left OpenAI in September 2024, where she had been CTO, to co-found Thinking Machines Lab with Zoph and Metz. Murati currently serves as CEO of the startup.
Thinking Machines Lab quickly attracted major investor interest, closing a $2 billion seed round in July that valued the company at $12 billion. The round was led by Andreessen Horowitz, with participation from Accel, Nvidia, AMD, Jane Street and others.
Broader talent shifts raise questions
While movement of senior talent between leading AI organizations is common, the departure of multiple co-founders from a startup less than a year after its launch is notable. The exit of a co-founder serving as CTO, combined with the loss of another founding member, may be viewed as a meaningful challenge for the company.
The company had positioned itself with a high-profile team drawn from OpenAI, Meta and Mistral AI. It has also seen other departures, including co-founder Andrew Tulloch, who joined Meta in October.
About Thinking Machines Lab
Thinking Machines Lab is an AI research company founded by former OpenAI leaders, focused on advancing next-generation artificial intelligence systems. Since its launch, the company has attracted significant funding and assembled a team of prominent AI researchers, positioning itself as a major new player in the AI landscape.
