Sundar Pichai
The name Sundar Pichai needs no introduction. The CEO of tech giant Google and its parent company Alphabet Inc. is a fitting example of the adage "the road to success can be found only through hard work". Mr. Pichai's journey from humble beginnings to one of the world's most successful professionals under the age of 50 is truly inspiring. His full name is Pichai Sundararajan but popularly known as Sundar Pichai. He was born and raised in a middle-class family by his father Raghunath Pichai, who was an electrical engineer in the General Electric Company (GEC), and his mother Lakshmi, who was a stenographer.
Here are 5 little-known facts about Mr. Pichai:
(1) He has many degrees
Mr. Pichai studied at the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, where he obtained a Bachelor of Technology (B.Tech) degree. After moving to the United States, he received a Master of Science degree from Stanford University and an MBA degree from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
(2) He likes to play football and cricket
The soft spoken CEO enjoys playing football and cricket in his spare time. He also enjoys reading English classics and watching F.R.I.E.N.D.S. According to India Today, he told students at Delhi College SRCC, "I am a big football fan. I follow football more because it is easier to follow there. I am a big fan of Barcelona and Lionel Messi."
(3) His first job was not at Google
Little is known that before joining Google in 2004, Mr. Pichai worked in product management at Applied Materials and in management consulting at McKinsey & Company.
(4) He had a love marriage
Sundar Pichai is married to Anjali, whom he has known since his college days. He is a Chemical Engineer from Kota, Rajasthan. Both were classmates at IIT Kharagpur. the couple has two children
(5) He was a contender for the position of CEO in Microsoft
In 2014, Mr. Pichai's name was suggested along with Satya Nadella as a contender for the position of CEO at Microsoft. Eventually, Mr. Nadella was chosen for the position.
Mr Pichai became the CEO of Alphabet Inc in December 2019, after Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin announced their resignations from their executive positions. They continue to be co-founders and controlling shareholders in Alphabet Inc.