Transitioning to an advisory role for Chainlink and starting something new in AI x Blockchain

TL;DR: I have decided to transition from my CPO role to an advisory role for Chainlink Labs, and start something new at the intersection of AI and Blockchain.

Just over 2 years ago, I left Google, where I was leading the largest AI platform in the world, to join the Web3 space. At the time, many people raised their eyebrows, and some friends even questioned my sanity ??

But I have always deeply believed in the democratizing power of blockchain technology, its ability to shift the balance of power back to people, and I wanted to help build that space. After I met Sergey, it became clear to me that Chainlink was going to be the enabler of this new world. I felt like I had discovered AWS long before it became obvious that every business would be on the Cloud. I was Chainlink pilled!

Fast forward today, the vision is now reality: every financial institution in the world is adopting blockchain technology full steam ahead, tokenization is prioritized by every major bank in the space, and everything that can be tokenized will be, which represents hundreds of trillions of dollars. On the consumer side, the Web3 infrastructure is ready for a new wave of amazing dApps that will provide people real ownership of their identity, data and assets. Every business will have a Web3 strategy, and it will all need to be connected with Chainlink.

So why make a change? Well, in the meantime, the AI industry has also made giant strides, and is now intersecting with blockchains in a major way. AI and blockchains are the two most transformative technologies of our times, and thanks to my unique experience in both worlds, I have observed and discussed this convergence for quite some time now (https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/how-can-blockchains-help-ai-kemal-el-moujahid-dl3pf).

One thing in particular has changed recently: SuperIntelligence is now in sight. It will likely be Mankind’s most valuable invention, with unimaginable consequences, benefits, risks, on our society and our lives.

I believe this invention should belong to the many, not the few. AI is too valuable to be centralized. Open source is an amazing counterweight, but I don’t think it will be enough.?

Just like Bitcoin came out of the need to decentralize money, we now need to leverage the democratizing power of Web3 to decentralize AI. My experience at Chainlink, Google, and Meta, put me in a unique position to do something about it. The dots are connecting for me, and it is time to act.

But this has been a difficult decision, as I love the Chainlink Labs team, the Chainlink mission, and our community.

I’m Incredibly proud of what we've been able to accomplish in these past 2 years. It’s been an intense and amazing ride, during which Chainlink evolved from being a strong leader in price feeds on the DeFi market, to a full fledged decentralized compute platform, with industry shaping products like CCIP, Functions, Streams, and Automation. Chainlink is more than ever the industry standard with over $12 trillion of transaction value secured. There are hundreds of trillions of dollars on their path to being tokenized, and Chainlink is in discussions with every major player to help them put these assets onchain. It’s hard for me to realize all this happened in such a short period of time.

This speaks to the exceptional caliber of the Chainlink Labs team. I had the privilege of working with wonderful people, and building a world class product team. I feel honored to have been part of this group, and I owe an ocean of gratitude to all of you. I want to particularly thank Sergey for the opportunity and the trust he gave me to lead Product for Chainlink Labs, and I have learned so much working with him.

And finally I would like to thank the Chainlink community, who has been so welcoming from day 1. Meeting you at conferences, learning about what you’re building, thinking about how to best empower you, have been the highlights of my time at Chainlink. Developers are amazing, you are the builders of this new better world. It’s been incredible to receive your energy, your encouragement, and your support.?

Of course, this support also came with high expectations (”Wen XYZ ?” ??), but they were only commensurate with the magnitude of the opportunity ahead. I always received these expectations as a privilege, that should be repaid in hard work and tangible results. I was a Link Marine before, and will remain a Link Marine ?? I will stay on as an advisor to Chainlink Labs, and will always make myself available to help Chainlink achieve its full vision #LinkTheWorld.?

This is a bittersweet moment for me. I’m excited with what’s ahead, but I will miss working daily on building Chainlink. As anyone who has worked at Chainlink Labs will tell you, Chainlink years count differently, and during this intense, fun, crazy time, I formed friendships for life ??

Thank you again, and as for what's next, stay tuned…