# Moonshot AI loses a lead author of the paper behind Kimi K3

> Chen Guangyu, 17, a lead author of Moonshot AI's Kimi K3 paper, confirmed he has left the company.

*Chen Guangyu, 17, one of three equal-contribution first authors of "Attention Residuals", has left the Chinese AI developer and is relocating to the San Francisco Bay Area.*

By Bez · InsidersFeed
Canonical: https://insidersfeed.com/news/moonshot-ai-loses-a-lead-author-of-the-paper-behind-kimi-k3

Moonshot AI has lost a key researcher behind its latest model. Chen Guangyu, 17, confirmed on 18 October that he has left the company, according to a [Seoul Economic Daily report](https://en.sedaily.com/international/2026/10/18/teen-prodigy-behind-kimi-breakthrough-leaves-moonshot-ai).

Chen was one of three equal-contribution first authors of "Attention Residuals", the paper behind Kimi K3. Moonshot AI now has two fewer of those three names than it had at publication...

Correction: Moonshot AI now has one fewer of the three equal first authors on its payroll.

Chen is relocating to the San Francisco Bay Area. The report points to Anthropic as a possible destination, but Chen shut that down. Joining Anthropic, he said, "is not happening." Where he will work next has not been confirmed.

This article draws on a secondary summary of the Seoul Economic Daily report. The full article was not read.

## The Insider view

The departure matters because of who Chen is. An author with equal credit on the paper behind a flagship model carries knowledge of how the work was done, and that is hard to replace. Moonshot AI, the company behind Kimi, has to absorb the loss while its model is still new.

The unanswered question is his next move. He has relocated to the Bay Area and ruled out Anthropic, which leaves the field open. Whoever signs him gains a researcher tied to the Kimi K3 result. Watch for his next employer, and for whether the other two first authors stay at Moonshot AI.

## Key takeaways

- Moonshot AI loses one of three equal first authors of the Kimi K3 paper.
- Chen says joining Anthropic "is not happening", so his next employer is unknown.
- He is moving to the San Francisco Bay Area, putting him near the US AI talent market.

## Sources

- [Teen prodigy behind Kimi breakthrough leaves Moonshot AI](https://en.sedaily.com/international/2026/10/18/teen-prodigy-behind-kimi-breakthrough-leaves-moonshot-ai) — Seoul Economic Daily, 2026-10-18