Barret Zoph, Former Thinking Machines Co-Founder, Joins Google As Research Vice President

Barret Zoph has joined Google as vice president of research, marking his latest move between major AI companies after a series of short-lived senior roles.

Zoph previously spent time at Google before joining OpenAI, where he worked for two years. He left OpenAI in October 2024 and subsequently co-founded AI startup Thinking Machines with Mira Murati, who had departed OpenAI the previous month.

Zoph later left Thinking Machines in January alongside fellow co-founder Luke Metz and returned to OpenAI. The circumstances surrounding his departure from Thinking Machines were subsequently reported by The Wall Street Journal, which said Zoph had been fired following an undisclosed relationship with a colleague.

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His second stint at OpenAI lasted about five months. During that period, he was responsible for leading the company's AI enterprise sales efforts. He left OpenAI in June.

Google has now confirmed his return to the company.

“We look forward to Barret returning to Google and bringing his RL and post-training expertise to Gemini,” a Google spokesperson told The Wall Street Journal.

A Return To Google And Gemini

Zoph's new role places him back at Google, where his work will focus on research related to Gemini, Google's AI model family.

The company specifically highlighted his experience in reinforcement learning (RL) and post-training. Reinforcement learning is a machine-learning approach in which models improve through feedback based on desired outcomes, while post-training refers to techniques used to refine a model after its initial training.

Google's statement characterises Zoph's expertise as relevant to its Gemini work, but did not provide further details about his responsibilities or the specific research programmes he will oversee.

A Rapid Sequence Of Executive Moves

Zoph's career moves reflect the unusually fluid executive landscape surrounding leading AI companies. His recent trajectory has taken him from Google to OpenAI, then to Thinking Machines, back to OpenAI and now back to Google.

His departure from Thinking Machines and subsequent return to OpenAI were reported in January. His second departure from OpenAI came only months later, in June.

The wider AI sector has also experienced significant movement among senior executives. OpenAI, in particular, has seen several prominent departures in recent months, including the August departure of longtime chief operating officer Brad Lightcap and the subsequent exit of a senior data-centre executive.

The reasons for individual executive departures vary, and the available information does not establish a single explanation for the turnover. Zoph's latest move nevertheless adds another senior AI researcher with experience across several of the industry's leading organisations to Google's research operation.