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Sundar Pichai
Sundar Pichai - 2023 (cropped).jpg
Pichai in 2023
Born
Pichai Sundararajan

(1972-06-10) June 10, 1972 (age 53)
Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India
Citizenship American, Indian
Education IIT Kharagpur (BTech)
Stanford University (MS)
University of Pennsylvania (MBA)
Occupation Businessman
Title CEO of Alphabet and Google
Board member of
  • Alphabet Inc.
  • Magic Leap (2014–2018)
Spouse(s) Anjali Pichai
Children 2
Awards Padma Bhushan (2022)
Signature
Sundarpichaisignature.svg

Pichai Sundararajan (born June 10, 1972), known as Sundar Pichai, is a famous business leader. He was born in India and is now an American citizen. Sundar Pichai is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Alphabet Inc. and its main company, Google.

A CEO is like the head boss of a company. They make big decisions and guide the company's future. Sundar Pichai started his career as an engineer. He joined Google in 2004. There, he helped create and improve many popular Google products. These include Google Chrome, ChromeOS, and Google Drive. He also helped with Gmail and Google Maps.

In 2010, he helped Google release a new video format called WebM. The Chromebook, a type of laptop, was released in 2012. In 2013, he also started overseeing Android, the operating system for many smartphones. Sundar Pichai became the CEO of Google in 2015. Later, he also became the CEO of Alphabet Inc., which is the parent company of Google.

Sundar Pichai's Early Life and School

Sundar Pichai was born on June 10, 1972. His birthplace was Madurai, a city in Tamil Nadu, India. His mother, Lakshmi, worked as a typist. His father, Regunatha Pichai, was an electrical engineer.

Sundar went to school in Chennai, India. He studied at Jawahar Vidyalaya and Vana Vani schools. He then went to IIT Kharagpur for his bachelor's degree. He studied metallurgical engineering there. This is a field that deals with metals.

After that, he moved to the United States for more studies. He earned a master's degree from Stanford University. He also got an MBA (Master of Business Administration) from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He was a top student at both universities.

Sundar Pichai's Career Journey at Google

Before joining Google, Sundar Pichai worked at other companies. He worked in engineering at Applied Materials. He also worked in business advice at McKinsey & Company.

Joining Google and Product Development

Sundar Pichai joined Google in 2004. He quickly became a key leader. He managed the creation and improvement of many important Google products. These included the Google Chrome web browser and ChromeOS. He also played a big role in developing Google Drive, a place to store files online.

He helped oversee other popular apps like Gmail and Google Maps. In 2009, he showed off ChromeOS to the public. The Chromebook was first tested in 2011 and released in 2012. In 2010, he announced that Google was making its new video codec, VP8, open for anyone to use. This led to the new video format called WebM.

Leading Android and Becoming CEO

On March 13, 2013, Sundar Pichai took over the management of Android. Android is the world's most popular mobile operating system. It was a big step in his career at Google.

On August 10, 2015, Sundar Pichai was chosen to be the next CEO of Google. He had been the chief product officer before this. On October 24, 2015, he officially became CEO. This happened when Alphabet Inc. was formed. Alphabet Inc. became the new main company for Google and its related businesses.

In December 2019, Sundar Pichai also became the CEO of Alphabet Inc. This means he leads both Google and its parent company.

Sundar Pichai's Public Appearances and Views

In December 2017, Sundar Pichai spoke at a conference in China. He said that Google helps many Chinese companies. He noted that they use Google to sell their products to other countries.

In December 2018, Sundar Pichai spoke to the United States House Judiciary Committee. This is a group of lawmakers in the U.S. government. They asked him about Google's search results and privacy. He explained that Google employees cannot change search results unfairly. He also said that users can choose not to have their data collected. He confirmed that Google had no plans for a "censored search engine" in China at that time.

In April 2024, some Google employees protested. Sundar Pichai stated that the workplace is not for political debates. He reminded employees not to use the company as a personal platform.

Awards and Special Recognition

Sundar Pichai has been recognized for his work. Time magazine included him in their list of the 100 most influential people. He was on this list in 2016 and 2020. He was also on the Time 100 AI list in 2024.

In 2022, he received the Padma Bhushan award. This is one of the highest awards given to civilians in India. He received it for his contributions to trade and industry.

Sundar Pichai's Personal Life

Sundar Pichai is married to Anjali Pichai. They have two children. Anjali is also from India. They met while studying at IIT Kharagpur.

Sundar enjoys sports in his free time. He likes cricket and football. He lives with his family in Los Altos Hills, California, in the United States.

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See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Sundar Pichai para niños

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