OpenAI researcher quits to build AI that can turn thoughts into text, joins brain-computer startup
Follow UsFormer OpenAI researcher Naomi Bashkansky has joined Conduit to build non-invasive thought-to-text AI models.
Her departure adds to a growing list of high-profile OpenAI exits, including co-founder Ilya Sutskever.
Sutskever's startup Safe Superintelligence is also rumoured to unveil its first AI model in the near future.
OpenAI’s Naomi Bashkansky has joined neurotechnology startup Conduit to work on AI models capable of translating human thoughts into text. Well, this is not the first time any researcher or senior executive who left ChatGPT-maker over the past two years to pursue new AI ventures in areas such as superintelligence, robotics and scientific research.
SurveyBashkansky stated on X that she left OpenAI in late July and became a founding researcher at Conduit the following day. Taking to the blog post, she explained her decision where she said that the startup is developing “thought-to-text” AI systems using non-invasive neural signals rather than surgically implanted brain interfaces.
The researcher said Conduit’s long-term objective is to enable people to communicate using only their thoughts. She also stated an ambitious roadmap describing how the technology may evolve over the next decade, with milestones extending to 2027, 2030 and 2035.
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What will this startup do?
As per Bashkansky, Conduit will collect neural data through non-invasive methods and training AI models to interpret those signals. The company believes that this can eventually make it possible for users to convert thoughts into written text without needing invasive medical procedures.
However, the startup has not disclosed detailed technical information about how the system works, but its focus places it among a growing number of companies exploring AI-powered brain-computer interfaces.
OpenAI continues to see high-profile departures
Before Bashkansky’s exit many experienced researchers have left the researchers to new AI startups. Among the most high profile departures was co-founder and former chief scientist Ilya Sutskever, who left the company in 2024 after months of internal leadership tensions.
Sutskever later launched Safe Superintelligence (SSI), a startup dedicated to building AI systems with safety as its primary focus rather than releasing consumer-facing products.
