Dave Citron, a former senior director of product at Google DeepMind, has joined Microsoft as a corporate vice president, marking the latest high-profile departure in the escalating battle for AI talent. Citron, who will serve as the Corporate Vice President of Product at Microsoft AI, announced the move in a LinkedIn post, stating he was “energized by Microsoft AI’s pace, principles, and product craft.”The hire is a significant win for Microsoft AI chief Mustafa Suleyman, who is actively recruiting top talent from his former employer. Suleyman, a co-founder of DeepMind, has promised a startup-like atmosphere at Microsoft AI to attract leading researchers and product leaders.Citron is the latest in a series of Google and DeepMind leaders to make the move to Microsoft. Reports from The Wall Street Journal and CNBC indicate that Microsoft has hired roughly two dozen employees from Google’s AI research lab in recent months, including longtime Google leaders Amar Subramanya and Adam Sadovsky, who both joined Microsoft in CVP roles this summer.Citron is no stranger to Microsoft, having spent nearly a decade at the company earlier in his career before joining Google. A 2005 graduate of the University of Washington’s computer science school, he now returns to a company rapidly expanding its AI division.The aggressive recruiting from Microsoft and other major players underscores the fierce competition to transform cutting-edge AI research into widely used products. In his LinkedIn post, Citron echoed this sentiment, writing, “Our focus is simple to say and hard to do: turn breakthrough models into products people trust and love.”
Read Dave Citron’s complete LinkedIn post
Day 1. I’m thrilled to share I’ve joined Microsoft as CVP, Product at Microsoft AI. 🚀Our focus is simple to say and hard to do: turn breakthrough models into products people trust and love. That means pairing frontier capabilities with great UX, real-world grounding, and responsible design so AI feels useful, safe, and human.What I’ll focus on– From frontier to everyday value– Agents people rely on to finish real work– Grounded, transparent personalization– Quality and safety that set the barGrateful to the teams and mentors from past roles. I’m energized by Microsoft AI’s pace, principles, and product craft.For the next few weeks I’m in listening mode: customers, developers, researchers, and partners. If you’re pushing what’s next, I’d love to learn from you. DMs are open.More to come as we build.