Amazon AI Lab Leader David Luan Announces Departure to Pursue New Venture
In a significant development within the artificial intelligence sector, David Luan, the head of Amazon's AI Lab in San Francisco, has publicly announced his departure from the e-commerce and technology giant. Luan revealed his decision to leave Amazon at the end of this week through a detailed post on the professional networking platform LinkedIn.
Two-Year Tenure Following Adept Acquisition
Luan's exit comes precisely two years after he joined Amazon through an acqui-hire deal involving his startup, Adept. In June 2024, Amazon strategically hired Luan, who served as Adept's CEO, along with other key co-founders including Augustus Odena, Maxwell Nye, Erich Elsen, and Kelsey Szot, plus additional employees from the startup.
Reflecting on his time at Amazon, Luan expressed gratitude in his LinkedIn post, stating: "Thanks to the Adept deal, I've spent the last ~2 years learning from Andy Jassy, Peter Desantis, Matt Garman, and Rohit Prasad while leading Amazon's agents R&D effort and our San Francisco AI lab."
Leadership in AI Agents and Research Initiatives
During his tenure, Luan played a pivotal role in steering Amazon's artificial intelligence research and development, particularly focusing on the creation of "useful AI agents." The San Francisco lab, under his guidance, concentrated on long-term research projects aimed at advancing the company's competitive position in the rapidly evolving AI landscape.
A notable achievement during this period was the 2025 release of Amazon's Nova Act agent, an innovative extension of the company's Nova models. This development positioned Amazon as a direct competitor to leading AI models such as OpenAI's ChatGPT, Anthropic's Claude, and Google's Gemini.
Accomplishments and Future Aspirations
In his farewell message, Luan highlighted several key accomplishments:
- Successfully scaling up the agent training recipes originally invented at Adept
- Conducting new reinforcement learning (RL) research initiatives
- Deploying the technology to AWS customers including Hertz, 1Password, and Amazon.com itself
- Achieving top rankings for Nova Act on agent research leaderboards like REALBench
Luan acknowledged that leaving Amazon was not an easy decision, expressing sadness at departing what he called "this wonderful team." He confirmed that leadership of the AI initiatives would transition smoothly to Peter Desantis, ensuring continuity in Amazon's artificial intelligence endeavors.
Motivation for Departure and Next Steps
The AI executive revealed that his decision stems from a desire to dedicate 100% of his time to teaching AI systems brand new capabilities as artificial general intelligence (AGI) approaches. He referenced his previous experience at OpenAI, where he helped incubate the first GPT models, and at Adept, where his team pioneered agent technology before it became mainstream.
"I have a bet for what's next," Luan hinted cryptically in his post, suggesting he has identified a new direction in artificial intelligence that warrants his full attention. While he acknowledged there remains "incredible work to be done at Amazon" with opportunities for expanded responsibilities, the proximity of AGI development motivated his choice to embark on a fresh venture.
Luan concluded his announcement with optimism about his next professional chapter, stating: "I'm excited to swing at the next idea!" His departure marks a significant transition in Amazon's AI leadership as the company continues to compete in the increasingly crowded artificial intelligence marketplace.
