Today's news highlights Google's approach to retaining AI talents and discusses its unconventional path to keeping AI talents with them. Retaining top AI talent is tough in this era amid cutthroat competition between Google, OpenAI, and other heavyweights.
Paying Staff to Do Nothing
Google's AI division, DeepMind, is paying some staff members to do nothing for up to a year. As a result, these AI staff are joining rival companies. This step has come up as part of a noncompete agreement that prohibits them from working for competitors during this time.
Noncompete Agreements
DeepMind uses "aggressive" noncompete agreements for some AI staff in the UK. These agreements bar the AI staff from working for competitors, making researchers feel left out of the quick pace of AI progress. The agreements are used to retain top talent in the competitive AI industry.
Reaction from Staff and Industry
Some DeepMind staff members have desperately contacted Microsoft's VP of AI, Nando de Freitas. They are asking for help to escape their noncompete clauses in these agreements.
De Freitas has expressed concern over the impact of these agreements on researchers' careers. Last year, the FTC banned most noncompetes in the U.S., but the ban doesn't apply to DeepMind's London headquarters.
Google's Response
Google has told Business Insider that it uses noncompetes "selectively." The company is making efforts to balance its need to retain top talent with the concerns of its employees.