Google parent Alphabet announces AI unit restructuring as key executives depart, triggering a near 4% drop in shares.
Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL) shares fell nearly 4% Wednesday following a leadership shake-up at its DeepMind AI division. CEO Demis Hassabis transitions to a new role as DeepMind chair and Alphabet chief scientist, while CTO Koray Kavukcuoglu steps in as SVP reporting to Sundar Pichai.
The company also confirmed the departure of chief scientist Jeff Dean and senior fellow Sanjay Ghemawat, who are launching an independent AI venture. Google’s AI-driven revenue surged 82% year-over-year to $24.77 billion in its latest quarter, surpassing estimates of $24.56 billion.
Despite strong AI performance, Alphabet faces challenges, including delays to its Gemini 3.5 Pro model to improve capabilities. Shares remain up 86% over the past year but lag recent market reactions to AI developments.