These people are all already making 9 figure compensation packages, I think if they thought they could do the work they wanted at Google, they would.

9 figure is hardly enough when some kid sells their vscode fork to them for more, is it? Why not just boomerang and get $$$.

Given the resources that would be available to them at Google: compute resources, data, etc. It's clear they want absolute freedom. Good for them. At this revolutionary turning point in history, I want the smartest people working in whatever area they want.