Google CEO Sundar Pichai on India’s Startups, Education and Youth #Ask Sundar

Google CEO Sundar Pichai held a town-hall at Delhi University's Shri Ram College of Commerce on Thursday.

While the interaction had Pichai joking about self-drive cars in Delhi and naming Android N on Indian sweets, it also offered a rare glimpse into the quiet man’s mind.

For one we know he follows Cricket and Football, and owns around 20-30 smartphones. When asked what he’d be if not the CEO of Google he said, “I’d still be building software. I love building products at the end of the day.”

However, while big words like ‘Machine learning’ and ‘Artificial Intelligence’ and ‘Augmented Reality’ were thrown around, Pichai offered his views about India’s education system and the startup boom.

Here is what Sundar Pichai said on India’s startups, education and youth:

Startup Boom:
“I’ve been waiting to see this change in India. It was only when I came last year that I felt very viscerally that the startup culture has really taken hold here…”

“…You’ve a large domestic market to tackle. That’ll give you the confidence to tackle not only the domestic market but global problems as well.”

India’s Education System:
“Among the things needed to solve problems, creativity is an important attribute. Encourage more creativity through the educational system. Today our educational system values rigorous academic knowledge over being more creative.”

What we can do: “Allowing a lot more creativity. Allow learning by doing things by hand and project based experiential learning. Make sure the system doesn’t penalize if you take risks.”

Youth:
“At some point of time in your careers you’ll have to work with people where you feel insecure. That means you’re working with people better than you and pushing yourself. If you feel secure with what you do, you’re comfortable, you’re not pushing yourself.”

India as Silicon Valley of the East:
“…There is nothing we’ll have to change intrinsically. There are probably a set of structural reasons that this has not happened yet. A big part of it is startups and risk-taking. India historically has had a much more professional culture than a culture of entrepreneurial approach.”

“…Entrepreneurs here seem no different to me than the people I meet in the Valley. India can do the same kind of things.”

Image credit: Indiatimes