In conversation with Clemens Meyer, Technical Director @ Google DeepMind.

This time we first dive into Clemens’ journey from startups to joining DeepMind and making an impact in interdisciplinary teams. Then how to balance exploitation and exploration in research, with a focus on measurable progress tracking and finally Google’s early role in the AI race, and reflections on the exponential nature of AI progress. Clemens also shares behind-the-scenes insights into AlphaFold’s success—how it began and how ongoing team efforts helped shape its impact.

00:30 Clemens's responsibilities @ DeepMind

01:53 The shift from startups to managing research teams

07:17 Teams @DeepMind

09:55 How to make sure that teams are making progress

11:28 Exploration vs Exploitation

12:48 Communication is key

14:11 The DeepMind team structure

15:29 The AlphaFold story

24:55 The Gemini story

27:07 Google joining the transformer race

29:11 What to look for in people when making a team?

30:29 The AI hype and what people are missing

32:31 Advice to create impact

35:05 Final thoughts on what should be changed or encouraged @ CDTM