In fight for software engineers with OpenAI, Anthropic, Meta and others; Google hired 20% … – The Times of India

Google has intensified its battle for AI talent by bringing back former employees, with 20% of its AI software engineer hires in 2025 being so-called boomerang workers—a notable increase from previous years, CNBC has learned. The tech giant confirmed the statistic remains accurate as of December and reported a surge in AI researchers joining from major competitors compared to 2024.The company’s aggressive rehiring strategy comes as it competes with OpenAI, Meta, and Anthropic in the heated AI talent wars. Google’s head of compensation John Casey told employees that AI-focused engineers are attracted to the company’s substantial financial resources and computational infrastructure needed for advanced AI work,…