Google CEO Sundar Pichai Shrugs Off Headling-Grabbing Exits Amid Talent War Hype: 'We Are Doing Very Well'

Benzinga
2025.07.24 06:12
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Google CEO Sundar Pichai addressed concerns over AI talent departures during the company's Q2 earnings call, asserting that Google remains competitive in attracting top talent. He emphasized the company's long-term investment in AI talent and its strong position in providing mission-driven work and collaboration opportunities. Alphabet's CFO also highlighted strategic investments in talent and operational efficiency. The company reported Q2 revenue of $96.43 billion, exceeding estimates, and raised its 2025 capital expenditure forecast to $85 billion due to growing demand for cloud services. Alphabet's shares saw a rise in after-hours trading.

Google-parent Alphabet Inc. GOOG GOOGL CEO Sundar Pichai has pushed back against fears of an AI talent exodus, saying the company remains competitive in attracting and retaining top talent.

What Happened: On Wednesday, during Alphabet's second-quarter earnings call, Bernstein analyst Mark Shmulik asked Pichai about the latest reports highlighting high-profile AI talent departures.

Pichai responded by downplaying concerns, saying, "We've obviously always deeply invested in talent, including in AI talent for well over a decade now, and I think we have an extraordinary both breadth and depth of the talent."

"I do know individual cases can make headlines," he added, "but when we look at numbers deeply, I think we are doing very well through this moment."

He said that leading AI experts seek "mission-driven" work, access to high-performance compute, and the ability to collaborate with world-class peers—areas where he believes Google remains strong.

Alphabet CFO Anat Ashkenazi also weighed in, noting the company is strategically investing in talent and compute while driving operational efficiency.

"We make sure that we invest appropriately to have the best brightest minds in the industry sitting here at Google," she said.

Why It's Important: The comments come amid an ongoing industry-wide battle for AI researchers, with rivals like Microsoft Corporation MSFT and Meta Platforms, Inc. META reportedly poaching talent from Google DeepMind.

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Alphabet reported second-quarter revenue of $96.43 billion, beating analyst estimates. Google Search alone brought in $54.19 billion.

Alphabet has also raised its capital expenditure forecast for 2025 to around $85 billion, citing "strong and growing demand" for its cloud products and services.

Price Action: In after-hours trading, Alphabet Inc.'s Class A shares rose 1.82% to $193.70, while Class C shares gained 1.72%, reaching $194.80, according to Benzinga Pro data.

Benzinga's Edge Stock Rankings show that GOOG maintains strong upward momentum across short, medium and long-term periods. Additional performance metrics can be found here.

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