New York: Google has named Prabhakar Raghavan as its new Chief Technologist. Previously serving as Senior Vice President overseeing Google Search, Assistant, Geo, Ads, Commerce, and Payments products, Raghavan has stepped into his new role, replacing long time Google executive Nick Fox, according to an announcement made by CEO Sundar Pichai on October 17, 2024.
Raghavan's appointment comes at a time when Google's core search business is facing mounting competition from tech giants like Microsoft and OpenAI, along with emerging startups such as Perplexity.
“Prabhakar has decided it's time for a big career move," Pichai said in an internal note. "After 12 years leading various teams, he'll return to his roots in computer science as Chief Technologist.”
Raghavan's position as Senior Vice President will be filled by Nick Fox, a veteran of Raghavan's leadership team.
Raghavan, 64, joined Google in 2012 after holding key roles at Yahoo, where he worked on search ranking, ad systems, and marketplace design. At Google, he led teams in Google Cloud and Google Apps, managing products like Gmail and Google Drive, which reached over a billion users.
In 2018, Raghavan took charge of Google Search, where he pioneered AI innovations like Smart Reply and Smart Compose, along with advanced search features such as video understanding and Lens-based "shop what you see."
Notably, Raghavan addressed public concerns when Gemini, Google's AI model, faced criticism for historical inaccuracies, offering a transparent explanation in a company blog post. His leadership continues to be marked by a focus on refining AI capabilities while adapting to the rapidly changing tech landscape.
