Ex-OpenAI CTO Mira Murati launches AI startup Thinking Machines

OpenAI’s former Chief Technology Officer Mira Murati has spent the last decade at the forefront of artificial intelligence development, helping build foundational AI models like GPT-4 and DALL-E. In February 2025, she launched Thinking Machines Lab, a new AI research and product company focused on making AI systems more adaptable and understandable.

The Big Picture: Thinking Machines Lab emerges as a significant new player in the AI landscape, with a mission to advance practical AI applications through open science and solid technical foundations.

• The startup launches with approximately 24 engineers and scientists, including notable OpenAI alumni John Schulman and Barret Zoph
• The company’s focus spans three key areas: AI system adaptation, foundational AI development, and open scientific research
• Their approach emphasizes multimodal capabilities, which allow AI systems to work with different types of data like text, images, and code simultaneously

Technical Focus and Innovation: Thinking Machines Lab aims to develop flexible AI systems that can be personalized for specific use cases while pushing the boundaries of capability in scientific and programming applications.

• The company is building infrastructure to support advanced AI models that can handle multiple types of inputs and outputs
• Research efforts will concentrate on making AI systems more adaptable to individual user needs
• The team plans to contribute to frontier research in areas like scientific discovery and programming assistance

Collaborative Approach: The startup has committed to an open, collaborative strategy that emphasizes transparency and shared progress in AI development.

• Thinking Machines Lab will regularly publish research findings and engage with the broader AI community
• The company takes an empirical, iterative approach to AI safety and development
• Their hiring strategy focuses on building a small, elite team combining PhD-level researchers with self-taught experts

Market Impact: The launch of Thinking Machines Lab signals a broader shift in the AI industry toward practical applications and real-world implementation.

• The company’s emergence represents increasing competition in the applied AI space
• Their focus on adaptable, personalized AI systems addresses growing demand for customizable AI solutions
• The startup’s emphasis on open science could influence industry standards for research transparency

Future Implications: While Thinking Machines Lab enters a crowded field of AI companies, their unique combination of technical expertise, focus on practical applications, and commitment to open science positions them to potentially reshape how AI systems are developed and deployed in real-world settings.