Sundar Pichai’s advice to Indian software engineers amid rise of AI

Sundar Pichai, in a recent interview with content creator Varun Mayya, opened up about AI in the Indian market and the advice he has for the country’s engineers amid the rise of this new technology.

Mayya and Pichai met at the Google headquarters after the company’s annual I/O developer event, which the vlogger jokingly called “AI Coachella”.

Varun Mayya took to YouTube to share the 10-minute-long interview. “Wow, what an honour! I got to sit down with Sundar Pichai at Google I/O for an exclusive podcast! We dive into the incredible advancements in AI and how India is poised to ride this exciting wave of innovation. Plus some more interesting insights!” he wrote.

At one point during his interview, Mayya says to Pichai, “I don’t know if you know this, but there is an entire industry in India built to help young Indians crack the FAANG interviews”. He adds that many students, despite being “smart”, are not focusing more on the fundamentals. He then asks Pichai how he would advise budding software engineers to get out of the “competitive exam” mindset and prepare themselves for the future.

In his reply, Pichai says, “Real success comes from understanding things in a deeper way.” He then uses the iconic motor scene from Aamir Khan’s film 3 Idiots to explain the difference between knowing something and understanding it.

“You have to understand the technology in a deeper way. If you do, you can transition, you can do things,” Pichai says, adding that he always encourages people to do this.

In the interview, they also speak about AI in the Indian market, wrapper startups, and creative adoption of artificial intelligence.

Since being shared a few hours ago, the video, which features Sundar Pichai discussing the future of AI, has collected more than 60,000 views – and the numbers are only increasing. It has also accumulated several comments.

What did YouTube users say about this video?

“Varun, this is a fanboy moment for us as well. I see myself in you talking to Sundar Pichai, from Google,” posted a YouTube user.

“Varun, many people think you get early success but don’t know seven years of hard work. I’m thrilled and proud to see you in Google IO,” added another.

“This was much awaited! Varun and Sundar Pichai on talk uttering pure gold! And also, congratulations, Varun! It’s clearly a big moment for you as well as us,” joined a third.

“Thanks for asking such great questions that too in such a short time! I really enjoyed it,” wrote a fourth.