Ex-DeepMind researcher: I made over $500K/yr — whistleblowers give up a lot to speak
Turn_Trout · x · 2026-09-12
Alignment researcher TurnTrout revealed he earned over $500K/yr with great benefits at Google DeepMind, and now makes roughly half with no health insurance after leaving. His point: when AI lab whistleblowers quit, they give up serious money to warn the public. In a follow-up he notes $500K is just a lower bound — many at AI labs make far more, especially counting IPOs and illiquid equity.
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