Two senior Google engineers, Jonas Adler and Alexander Pritzel, are poised to leave for rival Anthropic, according to a Bloomberg report on June 24, 2026. Both are regarded internally as key contributors to Google's flagship Gemini AI model, adding another case to a string of high-profile departures.
June 24, 2026 · AI Talent War
Google's Brain Drain Deepens as Two More Gemini Architects Head for the Door
Researchers Jonas Adler and Alexander Pritzel — both major contributors to Gemini and AlphaFold — are poised to join Anthropic, extending a string of high-profile exits that rivals are turning into momentum.
4
Top researchers lost to rivals in this wave
3 → 1
To Anthropic vs. OpenAI in this group
−1.2%
Alphabet intraday dip; closed only slightly lower
Where Google's talent is going
Jonas Adler
AI coding · Gemini pre-training · Veo
→ Anthropic
Alexander Pritzel
Model training · Gemini 1.5/2.5 · AlphaFold
→ Anthropic
John Jumper
AlphaFold lead · Nobel laureate
→ Anthropic
Noam Shazeer
Gemini co-lead · Transformer co-author
→ OpenAI
Why the talent is leaving
The AI race has shifted beyond compute and model scores into a fight over people. Several pressures are pulling researchers toward Google's rivals.
Pre-IPO upside
Stock options could surge ahead of imminent Anthropic and OpenAI IPOs.
Compute tensions
Internal friction over how computing resources are allocated.
Race for researchers
Top talent itself has become the decisive competitive edge.
GOOGLE'S VIEW
DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis acknowledges the movement but says Google still secures plenty of top people, with a research bench he calls the "broadest and deepest."
INDUSTRY READ
The departures are widely seen as a negative signal for DeepMind's research pace — and a threat to Google's standing in the AI race.
Continue reading The rest of this article is for AI News Blitz readers. Choose an option below to keep reading.
Already purchased? Sign in ✓ Signed in — this article isn’t included in your current plan.Unlocking the full article…