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Thinking Machines could face tough questions from investors after talent exodus

Maximilian Schreiner
Maximilian Schreiner View the LinkedIn Profile of Maximilian Schreiner
Jan 19, 2026
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The AI startup from former OpenAI CTO Mira Murati had a rough week. After firing a co-founder, several researchers left for their former employer. A planned funding round at a $50 billion valuation could be in jeopardy.

An all-hands meeting at Thinking Machines Lab descended into chaos last week. According to The Information, CEO Mira Murati announced on Wednesday that she had fired CTO and co-founder Barret Zoph for poor performance and talking to competitors. While the meeting was still underway, two other researchers - Luke Metz and Sam Schoenholz - quit via Slack message. Murati was reportedly caught off guard.

Shortly after, OpenAI executive Fidji Simo announced that her company had hired all three. Two more departures followed on Thursday. Of the five employees who left Thinking Machines this week, four went to OpenAI.

Investor confidence shaken

The departures hit the year-old startup at a critical moment. Thinking Machines is pursuing a funding round at a $50 billion valuation - more than five times its previous round. Investors have grown uneasy, according to The Information. Current backers include Andreessen Horowitz, Accel, and Nvidia.

The company has released just one product so far: an API for model customization. A consumer voice assistant and proprietary models are planned for later this year.

Murati left OpenAI in late 2024 during a key fundraising phase, taking 20 colleagues with her. Now the tables have turned. Last summer, she successfully fended off recruiting attempts from Meta. But with two of the six co-founders now gone and a third who left for Meta last fall, questions are mounting about whether investors still have confidence in Murati's leadership. According to The Information, some Thinking Machines investors were "rattled" by this week's events, though the report didn't provide specifics.

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