Stanford Graduates Stage Walkout During Commencement Address by Google CEO Pichai

A section of graduating students at Stanford University staged a protest during their commencement ceremony by walking out as Sundar Pichai took the stage to deliver the keynote address.

Videos circulating online showed dozens of students leaving the venue while Pichai, an alumnus of the institution and chief executive of Google, began his speech.

Some protesters carried placards criticizing the technology company’s collaboration with the United States government, including one sign that read, “ICE spies with Google AI.”

The demonstration comes amid growing scrutiny of major technology companies on university campuses, where concerns have increasingly focused on artificial intelligence, government contracts, surveillance technologies and their potential impact on jobs.

Despite the protest, Pichai largely avoided discussing artificial intelligence during his remarks.

However, he appeared to acknowledge the possibility of demonstrations when he joked: “People thought it would be really difficult for me. It is the last two letters of my last name, after all.”

Reports according to BBC indicated that the number of students who participated in the walkout was unclear, though some estimates placed the figure at about 200.

The Stanford protest is the latest in a series of commencement disruptions involving technology leaders at American universities.

In May, former Google chief executive Eric Schmidt was met with boos while addressing graduates at the University of Arizona after discussing the rapid rise of artificial intelligence and comparing the current AI boom to the emergence of personal computers decades ago.

Responding to the crowd, Schmidt said: “I know what many of you are feeling about that. I can hear you.”