Mysten CTO Sam Blackshear to join Anthropic for AI security

Sam Blackshear, co-founder and chief technology officer of Mysten Labs, announced he will step down to join Anthropic to work on defensive artificial intelligence security research. Mysten’s chief executive officer, Evan Cheng, will take responsibility for setting the company’s technical vision.

Blackshear co-founded Mysten Labs in September 2021 with four former Meta executives and was a lead engineer on the Sui blockchain. He said he will remain a close adviser to Mysten and continue to support the Sui ecosystem and the Move Foundation.

In a statement, Blackshear wrote, “When I reflect on my career, I have been happiest doing hands-on technical work while exploring new problem domains. This is an opportunity to do both, and I’m motivated to work on security at a time when the balance of power between attackers and defenders is shifting.”

At Anthropic, Blackshear will focus on research intended to defend systems from automated attacks and other threats that use AI to find software vulnerabilities, automate phishing campaigns and accelerate attacks on blockchain systems. His work will involve developing tools and techniques aimed at reducing the risk of exploitation by increasingly capable automated methods.

Mysten said Cheng will lead the company’s technical direction while the firm continues its planned product roadmap. The company emphasized continuity in developer support for the Sui network during the transition and noted Blackshear’s advisory role will help maintain links with the developer community.