The new venture is organized as a public benefit corporation and has secured funding from Khosla Ventures and Radical Ventures.
The departure of these senior leaders represents a significant loss for Google’s AI infrastructure and research capabilities as the company competes in a high-stakes market for generative models.
To mitigate the impact, Google has taken an equity stake in Discovery Loop and will serve as its primary cloud computing provider for the first year.
The startup’s mission is to automate the scientific method, using machine learning to autonomously propose, implement, and evaluate experiments.
Discovery Loop plans to use its automated systems to first improve its own machine learning algorithms before expanding into specialized fields such as chip design, biology, and material science.
The founders aim to create an "AI researcher" capable of generating novel ideas and making breakthroughs that exceed the capacity of traditional research organizations.
While the team plans to remain small and eventually hire staff, they intend to use their software to accelerate engineering loops that are often slowed by the inertia of large corporate environments.