Introduction Of Noam Shazeer
In a significant turn of events, Noam Shazeer, the co-founder and CEO of Character.AI, is making his way back to Google. After departing from the tech giant in October 2021 to establish the AI-driven chatbot startup Character.AI, Shazeer’s return to Google signals a convergence of innovation and experience that could shape the future of AI research and development. Noam Shazeer
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During his previous tenure at Google, Shazeer was instrumental in leading the team that developed LaMDA (Language Model for Dialogue Applications) Noam Shazeer, a cornerstone in the evolution of conversational AI. His work laid the foundation for more advanced and interactive AI tools, positioning him as a key figure in the realm of machine learning and natural language processing.
Joining Shazeer in his return is Daniel De Freitas, co-founder of Character.AI, along with a small contingent of employees from the startup. Their reintegration into Google is complemented by a non-exclusive agreement allowing Google to leverage Character.AI’s technology. Despite these departures, the majority of Character.AI’s staff remains with the company, which will continue its operations under the interim leadership of Dominic Perella, the company’s general counsel. Noam Shazeer
Shazeer expressed enthusiasm about his new role, stating, “I am super excited to return to Google and work as part of the Google DeepMind team. I am so proud of everything we built at Character.AI over the last three years. I am confident that the funds from the non-exclusive Google licensing agreement, together with the incredible Character.AI team, positions Character.AI for continued success in the future.”
Google has confirmed Shazeer’s integration into its DeepMind research team, though the specific roles for Shazeer and De Freitas remain undisclosed. The move underscores Google’s commitment to advancing its AI capabilities by bringing back one of its most influential researchers. “We’re particularly thrilled to welcome back Noam, a preeminent researcher in machine learning, who is joining Google DeepMind’s research team, along with a small number of his colleagues,” a Google spokesperson remarked. “This agreement will provide increased funding for Character.AI to continue growing and to focus on building personalized AI products for users around the world.” Noam Shazeer
Character.AI, which has secured over $150 million in funding, largely from venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), has made substantial strides in the AI sector. In a recent blog post announcing the leadership change, Character.AI highlighted the evolving landscape of AI, noting that the availability of more pre-trained models now allows the company to allocate resources more effectively. “When Noam and Daniel started Character.AI, our goal of personalized superintelligence required a full stack approach. We had to pre-train models, post-train them to power the experiences that make Character.AI special, and build a product platform with the ability to reach users globally,” the company stated.
The move also draws attention from regulatory bodies, including the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the Department of Justice (DoJ), and the European Union, who may scrutinize these “reverse acqui-hires” for potential anti-competitive practices. Last month, the U.K.’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) issued a notice indicating it was investigating Microsoft’s hiring of key personnel from Inflection AI to determine if the company was circumventing regulatory oversight. Similarly, the FTC launched an investigation in June into Microsoft’s $650 million deal, signaling that Shazeer’s return to Google could face similar regulatory examination. Noam Shazeer
As Shazeer transitions back to Google, both Character.AI and Google stand at pivotal junctures. Shazeer’s expertise, combined with Google’s vast resources, could accelerate advancements in AI, while Character.AI’s continued growth under new leadership will be closely watched by industry observers and regulators alike.
