Claude Code and Cowork product lead Cat Wu announces departure from Anthropic
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AT A GLANCE
The report indicates that Cat Wu announced on November 4 that she was leaving Anthropic, after two developers associated with Claude Code publicly said farewell on October 24.
Article
3 key members of Claude Code have resigned in the past 2 weeks, and product lead Cat Wu has also left
Dongcha Beating AI flash news: Anthropic's Claude Code team has recently seen a string of departures. On November 4, Cat Wu, the product lead for Claude Code and Cowork, announced she was leaving Anthropic. Previously, engineer Thariq Shihipar and Claude Code desktop developer Anthony Morris had already publicly said goodbye on October 24.
When Thariq left, he specifically recommended that everyone follow Cat Wu, saying they could learn about subsequent developments with Claude Code through her. Unexpectedly, 11 days later, Cat also announced her departure.
Cat has actually left Anthropic once before. In July 2025, she and Claude Code creator Boris Cherny jumped ship to Cursor, only to both return 2 weeks later. This year in July, Jenny Wen, the design lead for Claude and Cowork, also moved to Cursor to serve as head of design.
However, Anthropic overall is still expanding rapidly. Its listing documents show that its workforce grew from about 940 people at the end of 2024 to about 5300 people by the end of September this year. Over the past 12 months, the company disclosed a "regrettable attrition rate" of about 1%, meaning the proportion of employees the company wanted to retain but who chose to leave voluntarily.
Original link https://m.theblockbeats.info/flash/375354
Key points
01
According to Beating AI, product leads Cat Wu of Claude Code and Cowork announced on November 4 that they are leaving Anthropic 。
02
Reports state that engineer Thariq Shihipar and Claude Code desktop version developer Anthony Morris publicly said goodbye on October 24.
03
When Thariq Shihipar left, he recommended that everyone follow Cat Wu to stay updated on Claude Code developments.
04
The report states that Cat Wu left for Cursor in July 2025 along with Claude Code creator Boris Cherny, and both returned to Anthropic 2 weeks later.
05
Reports say that this July, Claude and Cowork design lead Jenny Wen joined Cursor as head of design.
06
The report cited Anthropic's listing documents as saying that its workforce grew from about 940 people at the end of 2024 to about 5300 people by the end of September this year.
07
Reports indicate that Anthropic's disclosed "regrettable attrition rate" over the past 12 months was approximately 1%.
AI-assisted interpretation
The following is analysis, separate from reported facts. Verify important claims independently.
This news brief focuses on the departures of personnel related to Anthropic's Claude Code and Cowork, while noting that the company's overall headcount is still growing. "Regretted attrition rate" in the original text refers to the percentage of employees the company wanted to retain but who still chose to leave voluntarily.
Why it matters to readers
The whereabouts of multiple personnel involved in product, engineering, and design warrant attention, but the existing materials do not specify the reasons for their departures, handover arrangements, successors, or the actual impact on product progress.
Beginners can understand this as a team personnel change announcement; staff departures do not mean the project has stopped, and one cannot judge the future performance of Claude Code or Cowork based solely on this brief news update.
Risks and unknowns
The materials do not include links to the original resignation statements by Cat Wu, Thariq Shihipar, and Anthony Morris.
The reasons for the departure of relevant personnel, handover arrangements, or the successor to the product lead were not disclosed.
Whether unconfirmed personnel changes will affect the release cadence of Claude Code or Cowork.
"This July" and "the end of September this year" depend on the reporting year for interpretation, and the corresponding year is not explicitly stated in the text.
The data on employee headcount and the "regrettable attrition rate" are merely relayed from media reports; the materials do not include the original text of the listed company's filings.
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Related concepts
Regrettable turnover rate
This term is not in the glossary yet. Browse related concepts in the glossary.
