New Faces Join AI Startup Led by Former OpenAI Leader

The latest buzz in the AI world centers around Thinking Machines Lab, a startup making waves with its recent additions. Bob McGrew and Alec Radford, both former key figures at OpenAI, have joined the team as advisers. McGrew, who held the position of chief research officer at OpenAI, and Radford, known for his groundbreaking work on generative pre-trained transformers, are now lending their expertise to this new venture. The startup's website was quietly updated with their names in March, but details about their roles remain under wraps. The new advisers bring a wealth of experience to the table. McGrew's journey at OpenAI began in 2017, where he quickly rose through the ranks, eventually taking on the role of chief research officer before his departure in September 2024. Radford, on the other hand, spent nearly a decade at OpenAI, leading significant projects like the GPT series, Whisper, and DALL-E. His departure from OpenAI late last year was to pursue independent research. Thinking Machines Lab, under the leadership of CEO Mira Murati, aims to make AI more accessible and customizable. The startup's vague research agenda and product roadmap hint at a focus on creating AI systems that cater to unique individual needs. Murati, who left OpenAI last October after six years, is joined by OpenAI co-founder John Schulman as chief scientist and Barret Zoph, former leader of model post-training at OpenAI, as CTO. The team also includes dozens of employees from top AI labs, reflecting the startup's ambitious goals. The startup has been making moves to secure significant funding. At one point, it was reported that Murati was in talks to raise over $100 million from unnamed venture capital firms. This influx of talent and potential funding raises questions about the startup's future direction and its impact on the AI landscape. As the AI industry continues to evolve, the contributions of Thinking Machines Lab and its new advisers will be closely watched.