Google faces a major talent drain! Nobel laureate John Jumper leaves DeepMind to join Anthropic

According to CNBC reports, John Jumper, a senior scientist at Google DeepMind who previously won the 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry with AlphaFold, announced his resignation on the 19th and will be moving to the AI startup Anthropic. Following the departure of Gemini co-lead, Google has lost another key figure, highlighting the current intense competition among tech giants for AI talent.
(Background summary: AI giants like OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google DeepMind will attend the G7 summit)
(Additional background: The list of members of Peter Thiel’s secret society Dialog has been leaked, including Musk, Trump’s son-in-law, former Google CEO, Silicon Valley founders, and U.S. Treasury Secretary)

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• Nobel laureate bids farewell to his nine-year old employer
• Google loses major talent again, AI talent war heats up
• Anthropic has not yet announced details of new position

The global race for AI talent is entering a fever pitch. According to the latest report by CNBC on June 19, 2026, John Jumper, a heavyweight researcher at Google’s AI division DeepMind, has officially announced his departure and is set to join Anthropic, a well-known AI startup founded by former OpenAI members.

Nobel laureate bids farewell to his nine-year old employer

John Jumper enjoys a high reputation in the AI and scientific communities. He and Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis co-developed the groundbreaking AI model AlphaFold, which earned them the 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. The model successfully predicted over 200 million protein structures, significantly shortening the time for biological and medical research, and is regarded as the highest example of AI applied to science.

Jumper personally confirmed the resignation on X (formerly Twitter): “After nearly nine years at Google DeepMind, I’ve decided to leave and join Anthropic (taking some time to rest). I am very grateful for my time at GDM. It’s been a special place, and I will continue to follow their future remarkable discoveries.” Hassabis also generously offered his blessings, replying, “We changed the world with AlphaFold, demonstrating how AI can benefit humanity.”

A bit of news: After nearly 9 years, I have decided to leave Google DeepMind and join Anthropic (after taking some time to recharge). I am incredibly grateful for my time at GDM. @demishassabis took a real chance letting me lead the AlphaFold team just six months after finishing…

— John Jumper (@JohnJumperSci) June 19, 2026

Google loses major talent again, AI talent war heats up

This shocking leadership change is not an isolated incident. Just days ago, Noam Shazeer, co-lead and vice president of Google’s Gemini model, announced his departure and joined OpenAI. The consecutive exits of two core executives highlight the unprecedented challenges Google faces in retaining top scientific talent.

Currently, tech giants like Meta, Alphabet (Google’s parent company), and rapidly valued AI startups such as Anthropic and OpenAI are fiercely competing to accelerate the development of next-generation AI systems. As a VP and Engineering Fellow at Google DeepMind, Jumper’s move undoubtedly provides a boost to Anthropic.

Anthropic has not yet announced details of the new position

In response to this personnel shake-up, a Google DeepMind spokesperson expressed gratitude for Jumper’s many contributions and wished him well in his future endeavors. As of the report’s release, Anthropic has not immediately responded with details about Jumper’s new role, but it is expected that more strategic plans will be revealed during the scientific event scheduled for June 30. This AI arms race concerning the future of humanity will undoubtedly face more uncertainties due to the talent competition.