Jeff Dean and other top AI researchers are leaving Google to launch their own startup

Plus more of TechCrunch's top stories this afternoon

View this email online in your browser  August 05, 2026 TechCrunch Top 3 Jeff Dean and other top AI researchers are leaving Google to launch their own startup: The legendary Google executive is joined by other outgoing Google execs in a joint mission to use AI to push forward the process of scientific discovery. Read More Trump's DOJ gains oversight of OpenAI’s green-card employee sponsorships: The DOJ has alleged that OpenAI used various tactics to prevent U.S. citizens from applying for jobs held by immigrant employees when it was sponsoring those workers for permanent U.S. residence. Read More How Lightspeed found its newest hire … via Instagram DM: Lightspeed partners Josh Machiz and Claire Zau stopped by the Equity studio to talk about the strategies behind their growing social media presence and their podcast, Lightwork. Read More A message from AWS Come curious: stay for the vibes. We don’t gatekeep. AWS Builder Center has the resources you need to make your portfolio stand out. Sign Up Afternoon Must-Reads Klaviyo acquires Elias Torres’ Agency in full-circle reunion for tech founders: The serial entrepreneur joins the e-commerce company as CPO to lead its AI agents. Read More AI makes weather prediction better. Can WindBorne make it lucrative?: WindBorne Systems has raised a $37 million Series B round to scale its weather balloons and AI forecasts. Read More Anthropic is hiring an AI chip design team: Anthropic is building a team for designing its own custom AI chips. The Claude maker said it would co-design hardware and models to help its technology run faster and more efficiently. Read More PSA: Apple’s Private Relay can leak your real IP address: A bug in how Apple implements its Private Relay feature, which in theory masks users’ IP addresses from the sites they visit, can reveal users’ real IP addresses. Read More Disney+ looks to TikTok creators to bring fan content to its short-form video feed: As streamers compete with social media giants for viewer attention, Disney+ is partnering with TikTok to bring creator content to its app. Read More Last but Not Least Moove raises $250M to become the backbone of the robotaxi industry: Moove is scaling up the autonomous vehicle fleet management side of its business and plans to someday own, not just manage, Waymo robotaxis. Read More Check out some of our other newsletters: StrictlyVC TechCrunch Events TechCrunch Mobility Want to adjust your daily newsletter schedule? You can do it right here Got a tip? Get in touch securely. Want to advertise on TechCrunch? advertise@techcrunch.com Has this been forwarded to you? Click here to subscribe to this newsletter. Unsubscribe Member Center Privacy Policy Copyright © 2026 TechCrunch Media LLC 501 2nd Street, Suite 650, San Francisco, CA 94107