SITUATION EXPLAINED: Barret Zoph is joining Google DeepMind as VP of research. • Google Brain from 2016 to 2022, then OpenAI as VP of research and post-training, joining a couple of months before ChatGPT • Then Thinking Machines as co-founder and CTO with Mira Murati, until January 2026 • He returned to OpenAI as VP and GM of B2B, then left again after about 8 months @theojaffee: "Presumably every step along the way, he collected a lot more money."