COMPUTE! The AI industry, overheard · Est. 2026
Fortnightly
awards

Standing Awards · №2

Numbered honours for service to the discourse. The mythology compounds.

The Golden Boomerang — Barret Zoph

For fastest exit-to-rehire, same-day division. Dismissed by Thinking Machines for reported “unethical conduct” on the morning of 14 January 2026; observed at his former desk at OpenAI before close of business.

№ 2.01 · referenced hereafter as the inaugural Golden Boomerang.

The Order of the Slack DM — The Anthropic Recruiter

She has, per LinkedIn, a name and a title. Four recent hires have credited her by both. The trade press has, in twelve months of coverage, reproduced neither. The corkboard, per Ms Patel, its representative, has filed a FOIA.

№ 2.02

The Order of the Open Letter — Jan Leike

For the resignation post that the trade press reproduced en masse within twenty-four hours. “Safety culture and processes have taken a backseat to shiny products.” Posted on X, 17 May 2024. He joined Anthropic on 28 May 2024 — thirteen days after his stated resignation date.

№ 2.03 · see also Issue 1, p. 09.