DeepMind, Google's artificial intelligence lab, has implemented non-compete clauses to prevent employees from leaving too early to work for rival companies. In the United Kingdom, the company prefers to pay employees to do nothing for 6 months to a year, depending on the level of responsibility.
DeepMind locks its researchers in with dissuasive contracts
Across the Channel, these clauses are legal as long as they are deemed reasonable. "Our employment contracts are in line with market standards," declared a Google spokesperson told Business Insider. "Given the sensitive nature of our work, we use non-compete clauses selectively to protect our legitimate interests."
But for Nando de Freitas, a former DeepMind employee now at Microsoft, it's an "abuse of power." He laments that "every week, one of you contacts me, desperate, asking how to escape your notice periods and non-compete clauses." He recommends against signing these contracts. "No American company should have this much power, especially in Europe. This is an abuse of power, which is in no way justified.""
Obviously, being paid Doing nothing for months on end can hardly be considered hell on Earth. But in a sector as dynamic as AI, not being able to work for that long can be a serious problem. First, because startups can't afford to wait six months for a new employee: that means fewer opportunities not only for these companies, but also for the brains.
And generative AI is advancing so fast that no one can predict what it will look like next year or two years from now. Talent wants in, without wasting any time.
Source: BusinessInsider
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