Former YouTube chief govt Susan Wojcicki has died after a two-year battle with lung most cancers, Google chief govt Sundar Pichai mentioned, describing her as an “unbelievable individual”. She was 56. Pichai mentioned he was “extremely saddened” by her demise.
Wojcicki was a pivotal determine in Google’s historical past and performed a serious function in shaping the Web. She was CEO of YouTube from 2014 to 2023.
In a tweet, Pichai mentioned Wojcicki was “as central to the Google story as anybody else” and that it was arduous to think about a world with out her.
“I am extremely saddened by the lack of my pricey pal @SusanWojcicki after two years of dwelling with most cancers. She is as central to Google’s story as anybody else, and it is arduous to think about the world with out her. She was an unbelievable individual, chief, and pal who had an incredible influence on the world, and I’m one in every of numerous Googlers who is healthier for having recognized her. She will probably be drastically missed. Our ideas are along with her household. Relaxation in peace, Susan,” she tweeted.
In an emotional Fb submit, Wojcicki’s husband, Dennis Troper, described his late spouse as a “good thoughts” and “a pricey pal to many.”
“It’s with profound unhappiness that I share the information of the passing of Susan Wojcicki. My beloved spouse of 26 years and mom of our 5 youngsters left us right now after two years of dwelling with non-small cell lung most cancers. Susan was not solely my finest pal and life accomplice, however a superb thoughts, a loving mom and a pricey pal to many,” he wrote.
“Her influence on our household and the world was immeasurable. We’re heartbroken, however grateful for the time we had along with her. Please preserve our household in your ideas as we undergo this tough time,” he mentioned.
Susan Wojcicki’s Journey
Born on July 5, 1968, Wojcicki has had a profound influence on the tech trade over the previous twenty years. Her journey at Google started in 1998, when she rented her storage to the corporate’s founders, Larry Web page and Sergey Brin, for $1,700 (roughly Rs. 142,000) a month. This opportunity encounter led to her turning into Google’s sixteenth worker and finally its first chief advertising and marketing officer in 1999.
He performed a pivotal function in enhancing Google’s promoting enterprise and conceptualizing AdSense, considerably growing the corporate’s income.
Wojcicki’s affect prolonged past Google when she championed the acquisition of YouTube in 2006, a transfer that proved immensely worthwhile for Google. She was named CEO of YouTube in 2014, a place she held till her resignation in February 2023.
Throughout his tenure, YouTube skilled exponential progress, reaching two billion month-to-month registered customers and paying out greater than $30 billion to creators, artists, and media corporations in 2021.
Below Wojcicki’s management, YouTube expanded its providing to incorporate localized variations in 100 international locations and 80 languages. It additionally highlighted new apps and experiences, comparable to YouTube Premium, YouTube TV, and YouTube Shorts, which surpassed 50 billion every day views in February 2023.
Moreover, she prioritized instructional content material via the YouTube Studying initiative and labored to extend the share of feminine staff at YouTube from 24 % to almost 30 %.
Wojcicki stepped down as YouTube CEO in February 2023, citing her need to deal with her household, well being and private initiatives.
Her outstanding profession has earned her a spot amongst Forbes’ “Energy Girls,” with an estimated web value of $765 million, reflecting her important influence and success within the expertise sector.
DEFENSE AND PERSONAL LIFE
Wojcicki had championed a number of causes, together with increasing paid household go away, combating gender discrimination in tech corporations and selling laptop programming and coding in faculties.
He has additionally been concerned in a number of philanthropic endeavors, serving on the boards of Salesforce, Room to Learn, and the UCLA Anderson Faculty of Administration.