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Eric Schmidt: Google Lost AI Because Employees Went Home Early

By Eric Schmidt · Leadership · 1 min read

Schmidt, no longer a Google employee: Google decided that work-life balance and going home early was more important than winning. The reason startups work is because the people work like hell.

Key Points

Google chose work-life balance over winning — and lost the AI lead
Founders are special. They're difficult to work with. They push people hard. Look at what Elon gets out of people.
These are network effects systems — time matters. Coke vs Pepsi is glacial. AI is not.

Google decided that work-life balance and going home early and working from home was more important than winning.

Google Chose Comfort Over Winning

Schmidt: I'm no longer a Google employee — beautiful disclosure. Google decided that work-life balance and going home early and working from home was more important than winning.

The reason startups work is because the people work like hell. I'm sorry to be so blunt.

Google decided that work-life balance and going home early was more important than winning.

Founders Are Special

Schmidt: There's a long history of companies winning in a genuinely creative way, really dominating a space, and not making the next transition. It's very well documented.

Founders are special. Founders need to be in charge. Founders are difficult to work with. They push people hard. As much as we can dislike Elon's personal behavior — look at what he gets out of people. I had dinner with him. He was flying that night at 10 PM to have a meeting at midnight with TSMC.

Founders are difficult to work with. They push people hard. Look at what Elon gets out of people.

Time Matters in Network Effects

Schmidt: I was in Taiwan — different country, different culture. TSMC has a rule that starting PhDs, good physicists, work in the factory on the basement floor. Can you imagine getting American physicists to do that? Highly unlikely. Different work ethic.

The reason I'm being so harsh about work is that these are systems which have network effects — so time matters a lot. In most businesses, time doesn't matter that much. Coke and Pepsi will still be around. That fight is glacial.

These are systems with network effects. Time matters a lot. In most businesses it doesn't — but AI is not most businesses.