Tag: Sundar Pichai

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Ensure Neutrality, INDIA Bloc Urges Zuckerberg, Pichai

INDIA parties warned the two companies that in view of the upcoming national elections in 2024, it should consider these facts “seriously”…reports Asian Lite News

Alleging partisan by the Meta’s WhatsApp and Alphabet’s YouTube, the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) parties on Thursday wrote to Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg and Google CEO Sundar Pichai saying they are culpable of abetting social disharmony and inciting communal hatred in India.

It also alleged algorithmic moderation and suppression of Opposition leaders content on their platforms while promoting ruling party (BJP) content.

INDIA parties also warned the two companies that in view of the upcoming national elections in 2024, it should consider these facts “seriously” and ensure immediately that Meta’s and Alphabet’s operations “in India remain neutral” and are not used wittingly or unwittingly to cause social unrest or distort India’s much cherished democratic ideals.

Sharing the letter on X, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge said: “Letter by INDIA parties to Facebook’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg citing the exhaustive investigations by the Washington Post that Meta is culpable of abetting social disharmony and inciting communal hatred in India.”

In another tweet he wrote: “INDIA parties also write to Google’s Sundar Pichai exhaustive investigation by the Washington Post that Alphabet and specifically YouTube is culpable of abetting social disharmony and inciting communal hatred in India.”

He also shared the Washington Post news report to back the INDIA parties claims.

In the letter to Facebook Chief and Alphabet CEO, INDIA parties said: “We are writing on behalf of the INDIA, an alliance of 28 political parties in India that represent the combined Opposition coalition.”

It said that they are the ruling alliance in 11 states and represent nearly half of all Indian voters.

“You may be aware of the recent exposes by the Washington Post newspaper about the role of WhatsApp and Facebook in aiding the communal hatred campaign of the ruling BJP. Specifically, the article cites details of how this vile, communally divisive propaganda is carried out using WhatsApp groups by BJP members and supporters,” the letter read, referring to the news report against Meta.

“In another article titled ‘Under India’s pressure, Facebook let propaganda and hate speech thrive’, the Post has elucidated with evidence the blatant partisanship by Facebook India executives towards the ruling dispensation. This was well known to us in the Opposition for a long time and have even raised it several times in the past,” it said.

The INDIA parties said that it is very clear from these exhaustive investigations by the Washington Post that Meta is culpable of abetting social disharmony and inciting communal hatred in India.

“Further, we have data that shows algorithmic moderation and suppression of Opposition leaders’ content on your platform while also promoting ruling party content. Such blatant partisanship and bias towards one political formation by a private foreign company is tantamount to interfering in India’s democracy, one that we in the INDIA alliance will not take lightly,” it said.

Referring to the report against YouTube, the INDIA parties said that it may be aware of the recent expose by the Washington Post newspaper titled “He live-streamed his attacks on Indian Muslims YouTube gave him an award” about the role of YouTube in propagating communal hatred and dividing Indian society.

“Specifically, the article cites details of how this vile, communally divisive propaganda is carried out using YouTube by BJP members and supporters,” it said.

“It is very clear from this exhaustive investigation by the Washington Post that Alphabet and specifically YouTube is culpable of abetting social disharmony and inciting communal hatred in India. Further, we have data that shows algorithmic moderation and suppression of Opposition leaders content on your platform while also promoting ruling party content,” it alleged.

The INDIA parties said that in light of the upcoming national elections in 2024, it is our earnest and urgent plea to you to consider these facts “seriously” and ensure immediately that Meta’s and Alphabet’s operations “in India remain neutral” and are not used wittingly or unwittingly to cause social unrest distort India’s much cherished democratic ideals.

“It is ironical that we are writing this letter in the birth month anniversary of the greatest champion of non-violence and social harmony in history Mahatma Gandhi. We are confident that you and Meta also yearn for a harmonious India that the Mahatma wished for. We look forward to your full cooperation in this regard,” it added.

The letter was signed by Kharge, former Congress president Rahul Gandhi, NCP chief Sharad Pawar, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray, Jharkhand Chief Minister and JMM leader Hemant Soren, RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, DMK leader TR Baalu, Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav, JD-U president Lallan Singh, Trinamool Congress leader Derek O’Brian, PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti, CPi leader D Raja, CPI-M leader Sitaram Yechury, NC leader Omar Abdullah.

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What an incredible moment: Pichai

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) established a communication link with its moon lander that is now on the lunar soil….reports Asian Lite News

Alphabet and Google CEO Sundar Pichai on Wednesday congratulated the Indian space agency and the country for the successful landing of Chandrayaan 3 on the Moon.

“What an incredible moment! Congratulations to @isro for the successful landing of #Chandrayaan3 on the moon,” he said in a post on X.com. 

“Today India became the first country to successfully achieve a soft landing on the southern polar region of the moon,” he added.

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) established a communication link with its moon lander that is now on the lunar soil.

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos on Wednesday congratulated the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and all of India on successfully landing Chandrayaan-3 on the lunar soil.

“Huge congratulations to ISRO and all of India!” Bezos, who owns Blue Origin, posted on Instagram’s Threads platform, commenting on ISRO’s post. 

Earlier on Wednesday, he also wished India for a successful landing, saying: “Root for India! Good luck, Chandrayaan-3.” 

Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk also praised India’s moon mission earlier. 

“Kinda crazy when you realize India’s budget for Chandrayaan-3 ($75 million) is less than the film Interstellar ($165 million),” Newsthink posted on X (formerly Twitter). 

Musk responded: “Good for India”, with an emoji of the Indian tricolour. 

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Business Tech Lite

Sundar Pichai’s pay soars to $226 mn amid job cuts

Pichai’s salary, however, has remained steady at $2 million for the past three years…reports Asian Lite News

Amid job cuts at Google’s parent company Alphabet, its CEO Sundar Pichai took home a whopping compensation of nearly $226 million in 2022.

According to the tech giant’s filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Pichaia’s compensation included stock awards of about $218 million.

Pichai’s salary, however, has remained steady at $2 million for the past three years, according to reports.

On January 20, Google CEO confirmed in a letter to employees that about 12,000 people will be laid off globally, accounting for more than 6 per cent of the total workforce.

Amid layoffs, tech giant Google is also creating several cost-cutting measures such as cutting down on free snacks and workout classes for its existing employees, the media reported.

The company’s micro kitchen that provides free snacks like cereal, espresso, and seltzer water have been closed on days that typically have a significantly lower volume.

The company also discontinued spending on personal equipment like laptops, according to an internal memo.

Tech giant Google also informed its employees via an email that fewer of them will be promoted to more senior levels this year as compared to the past.

Google India terminated more than 400 employees and some of the impacted workers took to LinkedIn to share their plight.

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Business India News

Pichai promises more capable Bard

Bard was released for the public on March 21 but failed to garner the attention won by OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Microsoft’s Bing chatbot…reports Asian Lite News

After facing criticism about his ChatGPT rival called Bard, Alphabet and Google CEO Sundar Pichai has said that the company will soon release more capable AI models.

Bard was released for the public on March 21 but failed to garner the attention won by OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Microsoft’s Bing chatbot.

“We clearly have more capable models. Pretty soon, we will be upgrading Bard to some of our more capable Pathways Language Model (PaLM) models, which will bring more capabilities; be it in reasoning, coding, it can answer maths questions better,” Pichai said during The New York Times’ Hard Fork podcast.

“So you will see progress over the course of next week,” Pichai added.

Pichai said that part of the reason for Bard’s limited capabilities was a sense of caution within Google.

“To me, it was important to not put out a more capable model before we can fully make sure we can handle it well,” he was quoted as saying in the report.

Pichai confirmed he was talking with Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin about the work.

He also raised concerns that development of AI is currently moving too fast and “perhaps poses a threat to society”.

“This is going to need a lot of debate, no-one knows all the answers,” said Pichai.

Google has denied reports that it is copying Microsoft-owned OpenAI’s ChatGPT to train its AI chatbot called Bard.

A report in The Information claimed that OpenAI’s success “has forced the two AI research teams within Google’s parent, Alphabet, to overcome years of intense rivalry to work together”.

According to the report, citing sources, software engineers at Google’s Brain AI group are working with employees at DeepMind, which is a sibling company within Alphabet to develop software to compete with OpenAI.

However, a Google spokesperson told The Verge that “Bard is not trained on any data from ShareGPT or ChatGPT”.

Bard, like OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Microsoft’s Bing chatbot, is based on a large language model (LLM), specifically a lightweight and optimised version of LaMDA, which the tech giant said will be updated with newer, more capable models in the future.

ALSO READ: ‘Deeply sorry’: Sundar Pichai on layoffs at Alphabet

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Business

‘Deeply sorry’: Sundar Pichai on layoffs at Alphabet

In an email to employees, Pichai said the company has already sent a separate email to employees in the US who are affected by the layoffs….reports Asian Lite News

Alphabet and Google CEO Sundar Pichai on Friday said that he is “deeply sorry” for reducing the workforce by approximately 12,000 roles, and takes “full responsibility for the decisions that led us here”.

In an email to employees, Pichai said the company has already sent a separate email to employees in the US who are affected by the layoffs.

“In other countries, this process will take longer due to local laws and practices,” he added.

The roles the company is eliminating cut across Alphabet, product areas, functions, levels, and regions.

In the US, Google will pay employees during the full notification period (minimum 60 days) and also offer a severance package starting at 16 weeks salary, plus two weeks for every additional year at Google, and accelerate at least 16 weeks of GSU (Google stock) vesting.

“While this transition won’t be easy, we’re going to support employees as they look for their next opportunity,” said Pichai.

Google will pay 2022 bonuses and remaining vacation time to those impacted.

“We’ll be offering 6 months of healthcare, job placement services, and immigration support for those affected. Outside the US, we’ll support employees in line with local practices,” saod Pichai.

The Google CEO said that these are important moments to “sharpen our focus, reengineer our cost base, and direct our talent and capital to our highest priorities”.

The layoffs at Google’s parent company were expected amid the deepening funding winter that has hit companies of all sizes in the global slowdown and recession fears.

Microsoft Chairman and CEO Satya Nadella said earlier this week that the company will be “making changes that will result in the reduction of our overall workforce by 10,000 jobs through the end of FY23 Q3 (third quarter)”.

More than 1,600 tech employees are being laid off per day on an average in 2023 globally, including in India, and the sacking episodes have gained speed amid global economic meltdown and recession fears.

Amazon announced to lay off 18,000 employees globally, including nearly 1,000 in India.

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India’s G20 Presidency will boost global economy, says Pichai

The tech giant also sponsored over 100,000 Google Career Certificate sponsorships in collaboration with the Nasscom Foundation and Tata Strive…reports Asian Lite News

India taking over the G20 Presidency will be an amazing opportunity to build consensus on strengthening the global economy by advancing an internet that is open, connected, secure and works for everyone, Alphabet and Google CEO Sundar Pichai has said.

Pichai, who received the Padma Bhushan, India’s highest civilian honour, from India’s Ambassador to the US, Taranjit Singh Sandhu, in San Francisco, said that it is incredibly meaningful to be honoured in this way “by the country that shaped me”.

“India is a part of me. I carry it with me wherever I go. I was fortunate to grow up in a family that cherished learning and knowledge, with parents who sacrificed a lot to make sure I had opportunities to explore my interests,” Pichai said in a blog post.

He said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Digital India’ vision has certainly been an accelerator, “and I’m proud that Google continues to invest in India, partnering with governments, businesses and communities over two transformative decades”.

Google recently announced to invest $10 billion in India’s digital future, working to enable more affordable internet access, building products for India’s unique needs, helping businesses of all sizes in their digital transformation, and using AI to tackle big societal challenges.

“We’re also investing deeply in digital skilling and have trained over 1 million women through our WomenWill Entrepreneurship Program and over 55,000 teachers in partnership with the government and local organisations,” said Pichai.

The tech giant also sponsored over 100,000 Google Career Certificate sponsorships in collaboration with the Nasscom Foundation and Tata Strive.

“Earlier this year, we added 24 new languages to Google Translate using a new advancement in machine learning. Eight of them are languages native to India,” said Pichai.

‘I carry India wherever I go’

Pichai has once again reiterated that India is an integral part of him and he was fortunate to grow up in a family in the country that cherished learning and knowledge.

“India is a part of me. I carry it with me wherever I go. I was fortunate to grow up in a family that cherished learning and knowledge, with parents who sacrificed a lot to make sure I had opportunities to explore my interests,” Pichai said.

He expressed his thoughts after receiving the Padma Bhushan, India’s highest civilian honour, from India’s Ambassador to the US, Taranjit Singh Sandhu, in San Francisco.

Pichai, who was born in Madurai and grew up in Chennai, in 2021 also said that India is deeply rooted in him and a big part of who he is.

In an earlier interview with the BBC, he said that “I’m an American citizen but India is deeply within me. So it’s a big part of who I am”.

During his earlier visit to India, he had admitted he used to bunk classes during his engineering days at IIT Kharagpur. Pichai completed B.Tech in metallurgical engineering from IIT Kharagpur in 1993.

Pichai’s mother, Lakshmi, was a stenographer and his father, Regunatha Pichai, was an electrical engineer at GEC, the British conglomerate.

His father also had a manufacturing plant that produced electrical components.

Pichai completed schooling in Jawahar Vidyalaya Senior Secondary School in Ashok Nagar, Chennai and completed the Class 12 from Vana Vani school at IIT Madras.

Moving to the US, he attained an MS from Stanford University in materials science and engineering and further attained an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Pichai was selected to become the next CEO of Google on August 10, 2015. He was appointed to the Alphabet Board of Directors in 2017.

In December 2019, Google’s co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin stepped down and Pichai also took over as parent company Alphabet’s CEO.

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Indian envoy hands over Padma Bhushan to Sundar Pichai

India's Ambassador to the US, Taranjit Singh Sandhu handed over the Padma Bhushan, one of the country's highest civilian Awards, to Google and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai in San Fransisco.

India’s Ambassador to the US, Taranjit Singh Sandhu handed over the Padma Bhushan, one of the country’s highest civilian Awards, to Google and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai in San Fransisco.

Taking to Twitter, Sandhu said, “Delighted to hand over Padma Bhushan to CEO @Google & Alphabet @sundarpichai in San Francisco. Sundar’s inspirational journey from #Madurai to Mountain View, strengthening India-US economic and technology ties, reaffirms Indian talent’s contribution to global innovation.”

On the eve of the 73rd Republic Day, the Ministry of Home Affairs stated that Sundar Pichai would be conferred with Padma Bhushan.

After receiving the Padma Bhushan award from Sandhu, Pichai in his blog said, “I want to thank Ambassador Sandhu and Consul General Prasad for hosting me to receive the Padma Bhushan. I am deeply grateful to the Indian government and the people of India for this immense honour. It is incredibly meaningful to be honoured in this way by the country that shaped me.”

“India is a part of me. I carry it with me wherever I go. (Unlike this beautiful award which I will keep somewhere safe),” he added.

According to the blog, Google CEO said that he is fortunate to grow up in a family that cherished learning and knowledge, with parents who sacrificed a lot to make sure that he had opportunities to explore his interests.

Every new technology that arrived at our doorstep made our lives better. And that experience put me on a path to Google, and the chance to help build technology that improves the lives of people all over the world, Pichai added.

Appreciating Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Digital India vision, Pichai said that Digital India’s vision has certainly been an accelerator for that progress. He also said that he felt proud to continue its investment in India, partnering with governments, businesses and communities over two transformative decades.

“We recently announced that we’ll be investing USD 10 billion in India’s digital future, working to enable more affordable internet access, building products for India’s unique needs, helping businesses of all sizes in their digital transformation, and using AI to tackle big societal challenges,” Google CEO said.

He further stated, “We’re also investing deeply in digital skilling, and have trained over 1 million women through our WomenWill Entrepreneurship Program and over 55,000 teachers in partnership with the government and local organizations. We’ve also sponsored over 100,000 Google Career Certificate sponsorships in collaboration with the NASSCOM Foundation and Tata Strive.”

Talking about the languages added to Google Translate, Pichai said that 8 of 24 are languages native to India. It means so much to see how people can access information and knowledge in their preferred language, and see the world open up to them in new ways.

“That’s why I continue to be so optimistic about technology, and why I believe India can and must continue to lead,” he added.

Pichai also said that he is looking forward to continuing the great partnership between Google and India, as we work together to bring the benefits of technology to more people. (ANI)

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Pichai pitches India as hub for Google products  

Reiterating his vision to help India join the digital bandwagon, Alphabet and Google CEO Sundar Pichai has said the ongoing investments are a reflection of the company’s confidence in the future of the country and its digital economy, reports Asian Lite News

Reiterating his vision to help India join the digital bandwagon, Alphabet and Google CEO Sundar Pichai has said the ongoing investments are a reflection of the company’s confidence in the future of the country and its digital economy.

The company, which announced a $10 billion Google for India Digitisation Fund last year, has already invested $4.5 billion for a 7.73 per cent stake in the top telecom network Reliance Jio Platforms, along with recently investing up to $1 billion in Bharti Airtel.

“It is a reflection of our confidence in the future of India, its digital economy, our desire to build products there, which we think will help us globally,” Pichai said during the company’s earnings call late on Tuesday.

On the company’s payment strategy, Pichai said it is thinking deeper about emerging markets like India as it “lines up with our mission of building a more equitable Internet for everyone”.

Pichai is also bullish on YouTube’s future in the country.

“When I look at YouTube in India, some of the commerce ideas we talked about earlier, you may see as the first stride in India first because we can get quicker feedback, a very dynamic, youthful population,” he noted.

“So we’ll do it there (in India) and then roll it out globally. We are constantly looking for opportunities like that,” Pichai added.

YouTube Shorts continues to drive significant engagement for the company globally including in India.

“We just hit 5 trillion all-time views and have over 15 billion views each day globally. This is helping our creator community reach newer and bigger audiences,” Pichai added.

“In 2022, we’ll stay focused on evolving our knowledge and information products, including Search, Maps and YouTube, to be even more helpful,” he added.

Blockchain push

Pichai made his first public comments on web3, saying he is watching the blockchain space and looking at how Google’s parent company can add value to development of the technology that’s being embraced by many of his Silicon Valley peers. “Any time there is innovation, I find it exciting,” Pichai said on Tuesday in response to a question about the technology on Alphabet’s earnings call. “I think it’s something we want to support the best we can.”

Investors have plowed money into companies working on web3, a vision of the internet model built around cryptocurrencies and digital ownership. Many other technology companies, such as Block Inc., Meta Platforms Inc. and Twitter Inc., have embraced this fervor with plans for payments, coins or services that incorporate digital tokens. Google has largely stayed quiet on the topic.

“We are definitely looking at blockchain,” Pichai added. “It’s such an interesting and powerful technology with broad applications.” He cited a recent announcement Google’s cloud division made to win more contracts with companies working on “digital assets.” Google has also started its own team working on blockchain. Pichai didn’t mention cryptocurrencies, which the company currently doesn’t accept for its ads or payments service.

Many web3 evangelists position the nascent technology as an antidote to centralized internet providers like Google. Pichai made his comments after Alphabet posted more than $20 billion in profit during the holiday quarter from its stable of web properties.

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