Google is planning to move its AI responsibility team out of DeepMind: Report
The move will affect the roughly 90-member AI responsibility unit, with the team set to join Google’s global affairs organisation.
Google is reportedly planning to move a team responsible for studying the risks and societal impact of AI out of its DeepMind research lab, according to a Wall Street Journal report. “GDM is moving into a more typical PA setup with central teams in central Google,” Helen King, a vice president at Google DeepMind wrote in an email to the staff. Defending the planned change, Google said that the move would bring its responsible AI efforts closer together. “Many teams across Google work on AI safety and responsibility, and by bringing our AI responsibility teams closer together we’re strengthening their ability to inform safety for our models and products,” a Google spokesperson said.
The change has reportedly raised concerns among some DeepMind employees, who fear it could affect the team’s independence and ability to closely study the risks of Google’s latest AI models. Employees have reportedly raised concerns that moving the team outside DeepMind could give researchers less insight into the work being done by teams developing Google’s Gemini AI models. They fear this could make it harder to identify new risks and decide which areas need further research. The broader reorganisation is also making DeepMind more closely integrated with Google’s central operations. Other teams, including HR and policy, are reportedly moving out of the AI lab as part of the changes. The move comes after a major leadership reshuffle at Google DeepMind. Co-founder Demis Hassabis stepped away from the CEO role and moved into a chairman position, while Koray Kavukcuoglu took over leadership of Google’s AI efforts.