{"id":676,"date":"2026-06-15T19:33:20","date_gmt":"2026-06-15T19:33:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sanfranciscomovingguide.com\/?p=676"},"modified":"2026-06-15T19:33:20","modified_gmt":"2026-06-15T19:33:20","slug":"google-ceo-sundar-pichai-passes-on-artificial-intelligence-in-stanford-commencement-address","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sanfranciscomovingguide.com\/?p=676","title":{"rendered":"Google CEO Sundar Pichai passes on artificial intelligence in Stanford commencement address"},"content":{"rendered":"<article><div><\/div><div><p>For college commencement speakers this year, mentioning how artificial intelligence is changing the job market or the world in general has been a surefire way to get booed. So when Google CEO Sundar Pichai took Stanford University\u2019s graduation stage Sunday morning as the keynote speaker, it was notable he didn\u2019t mention AI at all.<\/p><p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/sanfranciscomovingguide.com\/?p=674\">Bay Area resident admits to capturing wild animal, keeping it at home for weeks<\/a><\/p><\/div><div><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"x1px y1px vh abs\" height=\"1\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn-channels-pixel.ex.co\/events\/0012000001fxZm9AAE?integrationType=DEFAULT&amp;template=design%2Farticle%2Fplatypus_two_column.tpl\" width=\"1\"\/><\/div><div><p>Though the booming technology may seem like a natural fit for graduates of the prestigious university located in the heart of Silicon Valley, Pichai instead spoke about his own life experience. Still, the soft-spoken chief executive didn&#8217;t completely escape some backlash.\u00a0<\/p><\/div><div><\/div><section><div><div><button><svg><\/svg><\/button><button><svg><\/svg><\/button><\/div><\/div><\/section><div><p>Around 200 students walked out as Pichai took the stage, and smaller groups in the audience waved banners, blew whistles and waved Palestinian flags before also leaving mid-speech. Pro-Palestinian protesters condemned the company\u2019s ties with the Israeli government, particularly its controversial $1.2 billion cloud-computing deal with the country in 2021, known as Project Nimbus. The walkouts follow other Stanford commencements over the last three years where students have demonstrated in response to Israel\u2019s war in Gaza and the university\u2019s crackdown on pro-Palestinian demonstrations on campus.<\/p><\/div><div><p>For at least the second year in a row, students walking out on\u00a0Pichai hosted their own \u201cPeople\u2019s Commencement.\u201d This year\u2019s event featured activist Mahmoud Khalil as its keynote speaker. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested and detained Khalil for more than 100 days last year, threatening his deportation over his pro-Palestinian activism on Columbia University\u2019s campus in 2024.\u00a0<\/p><\/div><div><\/div><div><p>After the demonstrations quieted down, Pichai was largely well-received. Stories of his own failures and triumphs from his earlier years, like immigrating to California, dropping his doctorate in favor of a master&#8217;s degree, and struggles when he started at Google were greeted with scattered laughter and applause.<\/p><\/div><div><div><div><div><div><div>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"image\" class=\"wp-image-176\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/sanfranciscomovingguide.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/579f6db48285bc7e72d5aa331cb91a83-1024x1024.jpg\" width=\"1024\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sanfranciscomovingguide.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/579f6db48285bc7e72d5aa331cb91a83-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/sanfranciscomovingguide.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/579f6db48285bc7e72d5aa331cb91a83-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sanfranciscomovingguide.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/579f6db48285bc7e72d5aa331cb91a83-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/sanfranciscomovingguide.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/579f6db48285bc7e72d5aa331cb91a83-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\/\/sanfranciscomovingguide.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/579f6db48285bc7e72d5aa331cb91a83.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div><div><h2><div>The Bay Area&#8217;s best free newsletter.<\/div><\/h2><div>Stay informed, and entertained.<\/div><\/div><\/div><div><form><div><div><label>Email<\/label><\/div><div><div><div><\/div><\/div><button><div>Sign Up<\/div><\/button><\/div><\/div><div><label>Your website<\/label><\/div><\/form><\/div><\/div><div><div><\/div><div><p><span>By signing up, you agree to our <\/span><span>Terms Of Use<\/span><span> and acknowledge that your information will be used as described in our <\/span><span>Privacy Policy<\/span><span>.<\/span><\/p><p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/sanfranciscomovingguide.com\/?p=672\">Braden Montgomery\u2019s big debut part of a week that left the White Sox atop the AL Central<\/a><\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div><p>One of Pichai\u2019s predecessors, former Google CEO Eric Schmidt, wasn\u2019t received as warmly when he spoke at the University of Arizona commencement last month. Graduates booed when Schmidt said that \u201cAI is going to touch everything,\u201d even &#8220;if you don&#8217;t care about science.&#8221;\u00a0<\/p><\/div><div><p>In a recent New York Times \u201cHard Fork\u201d appearance, interviewers asked Pichai what his \u201cboo strategy\u201d would be in light of Schmidt\u2019s snafu. But Pichai took themes of technological advancement in a different route, focusing more broadly on accessibility, including an anecdote about rural women in India using smartphones to learn new trades.\u00a0<\/p><\/div><div><\/div><div><p>\u201cSeeing computing change people\u2019s lives as it had changed mine was the most exciting thing in the world to me,\u201d Pichai said.<\/p><\/div><div><div><div>More News<\/div><\/div><div><p>\u2014 Suspect in botched Bay Area murder-for-hire found after global manhunt<br\/>\u2014 200 Stanford students walk out as Google CEO takes stage<br\/>\u2014 Calif. bridge collapses, drops car onto its roof near river below<br\/>\u2014 &#8216;Top Gun&#8217; actor found stabbed to death after 911 call<\/p><p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/sanfranciscomovingguide.com\/?p=670\">Suspect in Bay Area botched murder-for-hire found after global manhunt<\/a><\/p><\/div><div><p><em>Sign up for\u00a0daily SFGATE breaking news alerts here.<\/em><\/p><\/div><\/div><\/article>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>College graduates nationwide have been booing speakers that mention the technology<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":675,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-676","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interesting"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.5 - 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