Why AI Researchers Are Leaving OpenAI, Anthropic and Google DeepMind

Eight former OpenAI, Anthropic and Google DeepMind employees describe different reasons for leaving, including limits on speaking publicly and choosing their research. Eight former employees of OpenAI, Anthropic and Google DeepMind describe leaving over the AI race, military uses and research they could no longer pursue inside their companies. In interviews published on October 5 by New York magazine with Asterisk, several describe greater freedom to speak or choose their research after leaving. Clara Collier, editor-in-chief of the nonprofit magazine Asterisk, conducted the interviews. The participants left at different times, from 2023 through September 2026. Their accounts range from objections to accelerating AI development to a team closure and a desire to work on different research questions.