In a major move for its artificial intelligence (AI) ambitions, Google has brought back Noam Shazeer, a prominent figure in the field. Shazeer, renowned for his work on the groundbreaking Language Model for Dialogue Applications (LaMDA), had left Google in October 2021 to establish the chatbot startup Character.AI. Character.AI, which garnered support from Shazeer’s own firm a16z, quickly gained traction, amassing over 20 million monthly active users.
However, despite its popularity, Character.AI faced challenges in monetizing its services and managing user behavior. Recognizing Shazeer’s immense talent and the potential of Character.AI’s technology, Google struck a deal, reportedly shelling out $2.7 billion to license Character.AI’s technology and bring Shazeer back into the fold. This acquisition extends beyond simply securing Shazeer’s expertise; it involves a broader collaboration between Google and Character.AI, allowing Google to leverage the chatbot startup’s technology.
Shazeer, along with several key Character.AI employees, will assume leadership roles at Google’s DeepMind. To ensure a smooth transition at Character.AI, Dominic Perella, the company’s general counsel, will serve as interim CEO.
With Shazeer at the helm, Google’s AI ambitions are set to accelerate, particularly with its upcoming Gemini project. Analysts like Laura Martin from Needham expect Google’s proprietary large language models (LLMs) to be a significant growth driver in the next few years. She views both Google and Amazon as front-runners in the race to develop cutting-edge GenAI tools and capabilities.
Google’s aggressive push into AI is evident in its stock performance. GOOGL shares have climbed 24% over the past year as the company integrates AI technology into its core offerings, including its widely used Search platform. This move reflects Google’s commitment to remaining at the forefront of the AI revolution, and Shazeer’s return is a clear indication of the company’s determination to succeed.
