The American news outlet Semafor has unveiled the behind-the-scenes narrative of the personnel shifts within Google AI. Based on insights from two individuals with direct knowledge of the situation, Demis Hassabis, the CEO of Google DeepMind, had been mulling over his departure for no less than a year. On August 5 (local time), Google made an official announcement stating that Hassabis would step down from his position as CEO of DeepMind and take on a new role as the Chairman of the department as well as the Chief Scientist of Alphabet. His responsibilities would then be handed over to Koray Kavukcuoglu, the Chief AI Architect.
In a parallel development, Jeff Dean, Google's Chief Scientist, along with three other high-ranking employees, decided to venture out on their own and start their own businesses. It's speculated that Hassabis' decision to resign might be attributed to his struggle to find satisfaction in a purely executive capacity, as his true passion lies in scientific research. This significant leadership overhaul led to a 4% decline in Google's stock price, fueling market skepticism regarding the company's standing in the fiercely competitive AI landscape.