Eric Schmidt, former CEO of Alphabet Inc.'s GOOG GOOGL Google, walked back his remarks where he blamed the search giant's focus on work-life balance and remote work for it losing out to AI startups like Microsoft Corp.-backed OpenAI, and Anthropic.
What Happened: In a lecture at Stanford University in April, Schmidt suggested that Google’s focus on work-life balance and remote work was putting it at a disadvantage compared to startups like OpenAI. A recording of Schmidt's speech was published on Stanford Online's YouTube channel on Tuesday.
In the lecture, Schmidt remarked, “Google decided that work-life balance and going home early and working from home was more important than winning.” He also noted that startups succeed because “people work like hell.”
However, Schmidt has since walked back his comments. In an email to The Wall Street Journal, he stated, “I misspoke about Google and their work hours.”
"I regret my error."
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Schmidt’s comments echo sentiments from other tech leaders. Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, told Fortune Magazine in 2023 that allowing employees to work fully remotely was one of the tech industry’s “worst mistakes.”
Despite these views, research on remote work’s impact on productivity remains inconclusive. Some studies show increased productivity, while others indicate a decline.
An analysis by Goldman Sachs suggested that the discrepancy might be due to different productivity measurement methods.
Why It Matters: Adding to the complexity, Tesla Inc. CEO Elon Musk has also weighed in on the future of AI, suggesting that advancements could lead to a world where human labor is no longer necessary.
Furthermore, Google has been under internal pressure as well. A leaked email revealed that CEO Sundar Pichai was particularly concerned about losing talent to competitors like Apple Inc.
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