Stanford students protest Google's Israel contract during Pichai's commencement address

Several students at Stanford University staged a walkout during Google CEO Sundar Pichai's commencement address on Sunday, protesting the tech giant's cloud-computing contract with the Israeli government.

Around 200 students left Stanford Stadium as Pichai, an alumnus of the university, began speaking. Many carried Palestinian flags and banners, chanting "Free, free Palestine," according to reports.

The protest was organized by groups including Students for Justice in Palestine and No Tech for Apartheid. It had been announced weeks in advance.

The students were protesting Google's involvement in Project Nimbus, a $1.2 billion cloud-computing and AI deal with the Israeli government, which also involves Amazon. Critics argue the technology could be used for military purposes amid the ongoing war in Gaza.

"We don't need another tech billionaire to tell us how to get rich off of the killing and surveillance of Palestinians," Stanford SJP said in a statement before the event.

Pichai did not address the protest or the war in his speech. Instead, he spoke about optimism and his personal journey from Chennai to Silicon Valley.

"We don't get to choose the world we graduate into, but we do get to choose how we frame our circumstances," Pichai told the graduates.

He recalled his father spending a year's salary to buy him a plane ticket to the US. "When the call from Stanford came, my father spent the equivalent of a year's salary to buy my ticket. It was my first time on a plane," he said.

After the ceremony, a BBC journalist asked Pichai for his reaction to the protest. He did not respond and kept walking.

Indian-American venture capitalist Vinod Khosla criticized the students on X, calling their actions "biased, idiotic, short-sighted and very selfish."

"The stupidity of these Stanford students to go walk out on Google and Sundar Pichai that's pioneered the greatest opportunity for equality in humanity ever," Khosla wrote.

Indian-American lawmaker Ro Khanna responded: "My understanding is these students walked out to protest Google's contract with IDF, given Israel's genocide in Gaza. Wherever one stands on those contracts, I believe you would support their right of free expression."

BJP Kerala president Rajeev Chandrasekhar also criticized the students, calling it an example of "extreme ignorance."

"Standing up for a cause should not be confused with ignorance or foolish behaviour. You are living in the age of Artificial Intelligence, not in the age of ignorance," he said.