FT: Google DeepMind has broken up its Nobel-winning AlphaFold team
Jumper, Adler and Pritzel now at Anthropic
Confirmed
The takeaway
The Financial Times reported on 29 July 2026 that Google DeepMind had quietly dissolved the dedicated AlphaFold team, reassigning most of the original AlphaFold authors to Gemini and other projects.
Status
- Claim
Confirmed
- Our reporting
- High confidence
- Importance
- 3 of 5
- Last verified
- 29 September 2026
Your AI and this story
- GPT-6 Astra90 days after its cutoff
- Claude Opus 5.529 days after its cutoff
- Gemini 4 Hydrogen120 days after its cutoff
- Grok 4.759 days after its cutoff
None of these four assistants can know about it. The closest, Claude Opus 5.5, stops 29 days before it.
Key facts
- John Jumper (VP, engineering fellow, 2024 Chemistry Nobel with Hassabis) announced on X on 19 June 2026 that after nearly 9 years he would leave Google DeepMind and join Anthropic after time to recharge
- Jonas Adler and Alexander Pritzel, core AlphaFold 2 authors, also moved to Anthropic (reported within days of Jumper)
- FT (reported 29 July 2026): most original AlphaFold authors were reassigned over the past year; nearly a quarter have left DeepMind entirely
- Remaining researchers went to Gemini, enzyme design, fusion and genomics work, and some to Isomorphic Labs
- Pushmeet Kohli (DeepMind VP Research): ‘Our strategy over the last nine years has been to focus on grand challenges... The strategy has evolved.’
- Jumper and Adler had earlier moved to an internal Google ‘Code Strike’ team, per The Decoder
- Jumper’s role and start date at Anthropic were not disclosed
What happened
On 19 June 2026 John Jumper, who led AlphaFold 2 and shared the 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, said he was leaving Google DeepMind for Anthropic. Two more core AlphaFold authors, Jonas Adler and Alexander Pritzel, followed. On 29 July the Financial Times reported (and DeepMind confirmed in substance) that there was no longer a dedicated AlphaFold team. Its members had been moved to Gemini-related work, other science projects or Isomorphic Labs. A DeepMind spokesperson said many AlphaFold researchers “continue today to drive scientific and technological advances across Google, Google DeepMind, and Isomorphic Labs.” The press did not report any change to the public AlphaFold Protein Structure Database.
Why it matters
It signals that DeepMind is moving from single-problem “grand challenge” teams to general Gemini-based AI-scientist systems. It is also a major talent win for Anthropic’s science push (Claude Science launched on 30 June 2026). The move came in the same summer as Hassabis’s leadership change and the Shazeer departure.
Sources
7 sources from 7 sites. Numbers match the chips in the text.
7 sources: 1 primary, 5 press, 1 reaction
Primary
Press
- Bloomberg: Nobel laureate Jumper departs DeepMind, joins Anthropic (19 June 2026)bloomberg.com, press
- CNBC: John Jumper to leave Google DeepMind for Anthropiccnbc.com, press
- The Decoder: DeepMind dismantles its AlphaFold team as key authors leave for Anthropicthe-decoder.com, press
- Engadget: Google DeepMind disbands its Nobel-prize winning AlphaFold teamengadget.com, press
- The Next Web: DeepMind won a Nobel for AlphaFold. Then it broke up the team.thenextweb.com, press
Reactions
- Hacker News discussion of Jumper’s movenews.ycombinator.com, discussion
Changes
- Filed