Several students at Stanford University went on strike Google CEO Sundar PichaiCommencement speech on Sunday to protest the tech giant’s cloud computing contract with the Israeli government.About 200 students left Stanford Stadium as Stanford alumnus Pichai began speaking. According to reports, many people carried Palestinian flags and banners and chanted “Free, Free Palestine.” The protests were organized by groups including Students for Justice in Palestine and Apartheid No Tech. It was announced weeks in advance.Students protested Google’s involvement in Project Nimbus, a $1.2 billion cloud computing and artificial intelligence deal with the Israeli government that also involves Amazon. Critics believe the technology could be used for military purposes in the ongoing war in Gaza.“We don’t need another tech billionaire telling us how to get rich by killing and spying on Palestinians,” Stanford SJP said in a statement before the event.Pichai made no mention of protests or war in his speech. Instead, he talks about optimism and his personal journey from Chennai to Silicon Valley.“We can’t choose the world we graduate into, but we can choose how we structure our environment,” Pichai told the graduates.He recalled that his father spent a year’s salary to buy him a ticket to the United States. “When Stanford called, my dad spent a year’s worth of his salary on a plane ticket for me. It was my first time flying,” he said.After the ceremony, a BBC reporter asked Pichai about his reaction to the protests. He didn’t respond and continued walking. Indian-American venture capitalist Vinod Khosla criticized the students at X, calling their behavior “biased, stupid, short-sighted and deeply selfish.”“These Stanford students foolishly left Google and Sundar Pichai, ushering in the greatest equality of opportunity in human history,” Khosla wrote.Indian-American Congressman Ro Khanna responded: “My understanding is that these students are protesting Google’s contracts with the Israel Defense Forces in light of Israel’s genocide in Gaza. Regardless of one’s stance on these contracts, I believe you will support their right to free speech.”Bharatiya Janata Party’s Kerala president Rajiv Chandrasekhar also criticized the students, calling them an example of “extreme ignorance”.“Defending a cause should not be confused with ignorance or stupidity. You live in the age of artificial intelligence, not the age of ignorance,” he said.
