In a significant week for the artificial intelligence sector, two major developments highlight the intense competition and strategic positioning of industry leaders. First, Mira Murati's high-profile startup, Thinking Machines Lab, is confronting a critical talent drain as two of its co-founders depart to rejoin OpenAI. Second, OpenAI has made a substantial strategic investment in a brain-computer interface (BCI) startup founded by its own CEO, Sam Altman, signaling a new frontier in human-AI integration.
The Talent Exodus from Thinking Machines Lab
Mira Murati, the former OpenAI CTO who launched Thinking Machines Lab in late 2024, publicly announced the departure of Barret Zoph, the company's co-founder and Chief Technology Officer, on social media platform X. "We have parted ways with Barret," Murati stated, simultaneously introducing Soumith Chintala as the new CTO. However, just 58 minutes later, Fidji Simo, OpenAI's CEO of Applications, revealed a broader talent movement, welcoming "Barret Zoph, Luke Metz, and Sam Schoenholz back to OpenAI." This indicates the moves had been planned for several weeks.
The returning individuals bring substantial experience: Barret Zoph previously served as OpenAI's Vice President of Research and spent six years as a research scientist at Google; Luke Metz had a multi-year tenure on OpenAI's technical staff; and Sam Schoenholz also has a prior history with OpenAI. This collective return represents a significant reacquisition of institutional knowledge for OpenAI.
This development is particularly notable as Thinking Machines Lab secured a massive $2 billion seed round in July 2025, led by Andreessen Horowitz with participation from Accel, Nvidia, AMD, and Jane Street, achieving a $12 billion valuation. The startup had already seen co-founder Andrew Tulloch leave to join Meta in October 2024. The loss of two co-founders, especially the CTO, could be perceived as a meaningful operational and symbolic setback for the startup, which aimed to compete at the frontier of AI development.
OpenAI's Strategic BCI Investment
In a separate but strategically significant move, OpenAI has made a major investment in Merge Labs, a brain-computer interface startup founded by Sam Altman. OpenAI is leading a $250 million seed round, valuing the stealth-mode research lab at $850 million.
Merge Labs aims to develop non-invasive brain-computer interfaces using "entirely new technologies that connect with neurons using molecules" and "deep-reaching modalities like ultrasound" to transmit and receive neural information. This approach fundamentally differs from Elon Musk's Neuralink, which requires surgical implantation of electrodes. OpenAI articulated its rationale in an official blog post: "Brain computer interfaces are an important new frontier. They open new ways to communicate, learn, and interact with technology." The AI giant further explained that BCIs will create a natural, human-centered method for anyone to interact seamlessly with AI.
This investment creates a synergistic loop where Merge Labs' BCI technology could become a primary interface for OpenAI's AI models. The OpenAI Startup Fund has previously invested in several other Altman-connected ventures, including Red Queen Bio (longevity), Rain AI (neuromorphic chips), and Harvey (legal AI). OpenAI also has commercial agreements with companies Altman chairs, such as nuclear fusion startup Helion Energy and nuclear fission company Oklo.
Broader Implications
These events occur within a specific investment climate where venture capital scrutiny of AI startups has intensified in 2025, with greater emphasis on path to profitability and technological differentiation. The talent movement reflects the premium placed on researchers with direct experience in building and scaling large foundation models, while the BCI investment underscores the accelerating convergence of artificial intelligence and human biology.
For the broader AI ecosystem, these developments serve as reminders of the intense competition for both human capital and technological frontiers that will continue to shape the industry's evolution. The ultimate impact on innovation—whether concentrated in a few giants or dispersed across agile startups—remains a key question for the future of artificial intelligence.
