Sundar Pichai, the CEO of web-giant Google and now also the CEO of Alphabet (parent company of Google), is known for an ideal success story which is no less than a dream for an individual. Now almost all of us know about his academic and professional journey. What had he studied, where had he worked, how did he get a job in Google, how he became the CEO of Google, his salary, etc. are so common on different platforms.
Let’s talk about some unusual facts about Sundar Pichai. Maybe you already know or maybe not; so read them all:
- In 2014, there was a buzz that Pichai was in active negotiations with Microsoft for the post of their 3rd CEO. Satya Nadella then joined them as CEO.
- Once Google management observed that Pichai is going to associate with Microsoft, they offered $50 million a year in stock to retain him and succeeded.
- Pichai often walks out of the meetings when he brainstorms deeply and comes back with a solution- this is what his subordinates admitted to Bloomberg.
- Pichai’s full official name is Pichai Sundararajan which was given by his parents when he was born in Madurai, Tamil Nadu in 1972. He belongs to a middle-class family and he is still attached to his roots even after his capital is now worth $600 millions.
- Right from childhood, Sundar Pichai has been blessed with a special talent of recalling numerical. Every number he has ever dialled is saved in the memory of his brain. Isn’t it simply amazing!
- His father, who was an electrical engineer, had to save money for the long years to buy a brand new scooter. Now the son can buy him a Bugatti anytime.
- Pichai has an active romantic streak and hitched with Anjali Pichai after a long love-ship, who was his classmate in IIT Kharagpur where he completed his B.Tech in Metallurgical Engineering with her soulmate. Now he is the father of two adorable kids.
- Sundar Pichai along with his brother (only sibling) did his schooling till 10th from Jawahar Vidyalaya and 12th from Vana Vani School . The schools were great at delivering quality education and also, their fee structures were quite moderate.
- His father, once in an interview said that he used to discuss technology with Sundar and it helped his young son develop a keen interest in technology.
- Pichai was fond of cricket and his passion drove him to become the captain of his school cricket team. Once I also sighted him playing cricket in an NGO with orphan kids. Lucky me!
- Sundar’s father spent more than his annual income to fly to the campus of Stanford University just to watch his son receiving the scholarship from Stanford University.
- Pichai was a management consultant at McKinsey & Company before joining Google in 2004. Yes, he joined Google in 2004 and was entrusted to handle lead product management for Google Chrome and Chrome OS.
- In 2011, he was pitched by Twitter to replace Jason Goldman as product management lead but he stayed back in Google.
- Pichai’s reporting boss in Google was Marissa Mayer. And, he used to wait for hours outside her office to meet her and describe the progress of his team on different projects. Later, Marisa Mayer became CEO of Yahoo in 2012. Resilient Pichai Sir! Hats off!
- In 2013, Larry Page and Google CBO Nikesh Arora visited Samsung’s manufacturing unit in South Korea. Sundar Pichai was also with them and played a pivotal role in building Google’s partnership with its Android partner.
Who thought a shy, soft-spoken, and diplomatic guy hailing from an ordinary family will become the CEO of Google. Sundar Pichai is truly an inspiration for millions of people who are eager to do something revolutionary in the tech-world. Respect from the core of heart
Image Credit- Pichai sir’s office ;-)
Edit- Met Pichai Sir's schoolmate in the comment section and tweaked up the information about his schooling a bit.