Big ideas begin here: Sergey Brin at Stanford

Centennial Celebration and Historical Context [01:27]

• The event marks the closing of Stanford's School of Engineering's centennial year, celebrating 100 years since its formation in 1925.
• The school's origins trace back to 1891 with four departments: chemical, electrical, mechanical engineering, and mining and metallurgy.
• These departments were unified in 1925 to form the School of Engineering, with material science and engineering being a renamed department.
• The centennial year included various events like panels with past deans, a large party on the quad, a fireside chat with Jensen Huang and John Hennessy, and a Stanford football game.
• One highly interesting fact is that Google was directly funded by the National Science Foundation through a project on digital libraries.

"And it was in 1925, 100 years ago, when those four departments were brought together to form a school."

The Genesis of Google and Entrepreneurship at Stanford [03:40]

• The formation of Google is highlighted as a significant moment stemming from the school's history.
• Sergey Brin met Larry Page in 1995 while considering the PhD program at Stanford.
• Their collaboration began with the "digital libraries" project, funded by the National Science Foundation, which ultimately led to the PageRank algorithm.
• The first server that ran the PageRank algorithm is present at the event.
• Thousands of companies founded by Stanford students, faculty, and alumni have generated trillions of dollars in economic growth.
• Fred Turman, the third dean, is credited with laying the foundation for entrepreneurship by mentoring individuals like William Hewlett and David Packard, and establishing the Stanford Industrial Park.

"So if you ever have any doubt about the impact of federal funding, Google came directly from an NSF project."

Early 1990s Stanford and the Dawn of the Internet Revolution [06:21]

• The early 1990s are described as a period when email was becoming widespread, and entrepreneurship was accelerating.
• The Stanford Technology Ventures program, which hosts the entrepreneurial thought leaders class, was conceived by Dean Jim Gibbons.
• John Hennessy arrived as an assistant professor in 1993, the same year Sergey Brin started his CS PhD program.
• John L. Hennessy was an undergraduate at Stanford during this time and later became the 13th president of Stanford in August 2024.
• Hennessy's tenure as president is noted for his support of the School of Engineering and his understanding of its entrepreneurial culture.

"The science and engineering quad was on drafting paper at best, maybe just in people's minds."

Sergey Brin's Stanford Experience and Early Google Days [11:05]

• Brin describes his time as a PhD student (starting in 1993) as a "creative and free time," with professors providing significant freedom.
• He humorously recounts his early projects, including attempts to reverse shredders and learning lockpicking.
• He also details a mischievous incident involving climbing out of his office window onto scaffolding to access a computer that could stamp out keys, enabling him to create a master key for a period.
• Brin notes that his early entrepreneurial idea, an online pizza ordering system that used faxes, failed because restaurants didn't check their faxes frequently.
• He and Larry Page developed the core ideas behind Google, focusing on the web's link structure and data mining, eventually realizing its potential for search.
• They initially attempted to license the technology, including a $1.6 million offer to Excite, which fell through due to a prank by a friend who faked the reply.
• Ultimately, Brin and Page decided to start their own company, with Brin still technically on a leave of absence from his PhD program.

"I I I was a senior in the fall of 1993 and um some years ago a reporter for the New York Times wrote an article about my Stamford graduating class which was the class of 94 and the the gist of the article was it was I hope that's better the gist of the article was that it was the most fortunate grad college graduating class of all time because we graduated ated at a moment that was on the cusp of the internet and technology taking off and we were right in the middle of it in Silicon Valley"

Google's Founding Principles and Innovation Culture [21:19]

• Brin highlights Larry Page's ambition and their ambitious mission statement to "organize all the world's information."
• He believes that starting as a company with academic roots, rather than immediately after college, influenced their thinking about foundational R&D.
• Google's hiring of PhDs and individuals with strong research backgrounds, like Warschauer, contributed to its innovative culture.
• Brin acknowledges that large companies struggle with innovation but attributes Google's success to trying hard things and investing in technically deep and challenging problems.
• He notes that the technical sophistication required has increased over time, with current hires being mathematically and computer science-wise very sharp, including many physicists.

"I I mean I think early on uh well Larry was always very ambitious. He still is. In fact, there's almost no plan you can suggest to him that he won't say like, 'Oh, that's not ambitious enough. You need, you know, not just the solar system, the galaxy, you know.'"

The Landscape of AI and Future of Technology [28:05]

• Brin admits that Google "messed up" by underinvesting in AI about eight years prior, particularly after publishing the transformer paper.
• He notes that OpenAI capitalized on this, with figures like Ilya Sutskever moving to OpenAI.
• Google benefited from its long history in neural network research (Google Brain) and hiring talent like Jeff Dean, who was passionate about neural networks from a young age.
• The development of TPUs (Tensor Processing Units) by Google over 12 years ago was a significant investment in AI hardware.
• The rapid pace of AI innovation is acknowledged, with the competitive landscape including top US and Chinese companies.
• The question of whether AI will eventually reach or surpass human intelligence, including the concept of superintelligence, remains unknown.

"Um, I mean yes, it's a huge amount of investment for sure. Um, I guess I would say in some ways uh we for sure messed up and that we underinvested and sort of didn't take it as seriously as we should have say eight years ago when we published the transformer paper."

Advice for Students and the Evolving Nature of Universities [36:09]

• Brin states that it's difficult to predict exactly how AI will affect careers, but it will undoubtedly change jobs and studies.
• He advises students to use AI to their benefit, as it can assist in various tasks, from brainstorming ideas to understanding complex topics.
• Regarding choosing a major, Brin recommends pursuing computer science out of passion, noting that better coding leads to better AI and that AI is also proficient in fields like comparative literature.
• He suggests that AI's capability to generate code, while useful, can sometimes lead to significant mistakes, making human oversight crucial.
• Brin contemplates the future of universities, questioning the necessity of geographical concentration and suggesting that the traditional model might evolve due to information spread and online learning platforms.

"Um, I mean, I think it's super hard to predict exactly what will happen. I think, you know, if we look at from the advent of the web to cell phones and so forth, those have transformed our society profoundly, have transformed the kinds of jobs and careers and studies people do for sure. and AI will 100% change that."

Academia-Industry Pipeline and Emerging Technologies [46:36]

• Brin is uncertain about the cruciality of the academia-to-industry pipeline in its traditional sense, given the compressed timelines for new ideas to become commercially valuable.
• He acknowledges that companies now invest more in fundamental research, making the pace of innovation faster.
• However, he suggests that entirely new architectural ideas might still benefit from a longer incubation period in academia.
• Emerging technologies like quantum computing and advancements in materials science and biology/health are discussed as potentially underestimated.
• The intense focus on AI is noted, potentially diverting attention from other critical fields.

"Um, yeah, I'm going to give you an I don't know on that. Uh, because I guess, you know, when I was a grad student, the sort of time from some new idea to it being maybe commercially valuable was many decades."

Personal Reflections and Advice for Aspiring Entrepreneurs [51:11]

• Brin advises aspiring entrepreneurs to fully bake their ideas before launching them, citing Google Glass as an example of premature commercialization.
• He cautions against rushing to market due to external expectations and expenses, emphasizing the need for sufficient development time.
• The definition of a "good life" for Brin includes enjoying life, spending quality time with family, and intellectual challenge, which led him to return to working on AI after an initial retirement.
• He shares a personal anecdote about growing up in poverty in Moscow and the challenging yet ultimately rewarding transition to the US, highlighting how difficult transitions can pay off.
• Brin also mentions listening to podcasts like "All-In" and engaging in interactive discussions with AI during his commute as ways to stay informed.

"Um, yeah, when you have like your cool new wearable device idea, really fully bake it before you have a cool stunt involving skydiving and airship."

The Future of Universities and Staying Sharp [40:43]

• Brin questions what it means to have a university in the coming century, suggesting that the traditional geographically concentrated model may evolve.
• He notes that information and education are increasingly accessible online and through AI.
• He believes that individuals can create and innovate regardless of their formal degrees, citing examples of people hired without bachelor's degrees.
• To stay on top of things, Brin prefers interactive discussions, often with AI, and listens to podcasts like "The All-In Podcast."

"Um wow. Okay. That's a that's a big responsibility like kind of plan or the dean job will come. It is a big responsibility."