Google is reportedly building an AI startup incubator that taps into its network of former employees, known as “Xooglers.”

The idea is straightforward: as top talent leaves to launch AI startups, Google keeps a close connection by supporting an incubator built around its alumni and the companies they go on to create, according to Bloomberg.

This would expand Google’s existing startup ecosystem.

The company already runs the AI Futures Fund, a joint initiative between Google DeepMind and Google Labs that provides equity funding, technical collaboration, and early access to DeepMind models, typically investing up to about $2 million in early-stage AI startups.

It also operates Google for Startups accelerators, which offer equity-free, cohort-based support. The proposed alumni-focused incubator would add a third pathway, targeting founders who already understand Google’s systems and culture from their time at the company.

The appeal of that approach is largely practical: former employees already understand the company’s systems, research culture, and models, making collaboration easier to establish and faster to execute.

It also responds to a broader talent shift. Alumni from Google and DeepMind, alongside former staff of OpenAI, Anthropic, and xAI, have already raised hundreds of millions of dollars for new ventures founded only months ago.

At the same time, venture capital has poured an estimated $18.8bn into AI startups launched since early 2025, much of it driven by investors backing founders emerging from leading AI labs.

For Google, which continues to see senior researchers leave to form competing companies, an incubator offers a way to turn that talent outflow into an opportunity for early equity participation.