Co-Lead of Sora Video Generator at OpenAI Joins Google

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Tim Brooks Joins Google DeepMind to Work on Video Generation Technologies

Tim Brooks, one of the co-leads on OpenAI’s video generator Sora, has announced that he will be leaving the company to join Google DeepMind. Brooks made the announcement in a post on X (formerly Twitter) and expressed his excitement about joining the team at Google DeepMind.

A New Chapter for Tim Brooks

Brooks had been working on Sora since January 2023, when he helped kickstart the project as one of the first researchers to work on it. In his role, he spearheaded the research direction and large model training. On his LinkedIn profile, Brooks claims to have played a significant role in shaping the project’s research direction.

His departure comes as Sora, which has yet to be released, is reportedly facing technical setbacks that position it poorly against rival systems from Luma, Runway, and others.

Google DeepMind Welcomes Tim Brooks

Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis welcomed Brooks in a reply on X, saying that he will help make the long-standing dream of a world simulator a reality. The concept of a "world simulator" is somewhat vague and poorly defined but has been applied to models like Genie, which can generate playable, action-controllable virtual worlds from synthesized images, real photos, and even sketches.

What is a World Simulator?

According to DeepMind researchers, the applications of a real-world simulator range from controllable content creation in games and movies to training embodied agents purely in simulation that can be directly deployed in the real world. In essence, a world simulator would allow for the creation of realistic virtual environments that can be used for various purposes such as game development, movie production, and even robotics.

Brooks’ Departure: A Blow to OpenAI?

Brooks’ departure is part of a larger trend at OpenAI, where several high-profile researchers have left the company in recent months. CTO Mira Murati, chief research officer Bob McGrew, and research VP Barret Zophannounced their departures in late September. Prominent research scientist Andrej KarpathyleftOpenAI in February; months later, OpenAI co-founder and former chief scientist Ilya Sutskever quit, along with ex-safety leaderJan Leike. In August, co-founderJohn Schulmansaid he would leave OpenAI.

What’s Next for Sora?

With Brooks’ departure, it remains to be seen how the project will continue without him. Will OpenAI find a suitable replacement, or will the project be put on hold indefinitely? Only time will tell.