President & Chief Investment Officer of Google | Ruth Porat 169

In this rare and deeply personal conversation, I was fortunate to sit down with Ruth as she opened up about the defining moments of her life, from learning the power of smart risk to helping stabilize the global economy in 2008.

Her and I dive deep into Google’s AI strategy, how competition from ChatGPT ultimately makes the company stronger, the Nobel Prize–winning breakthroughs behind AlphaFold and Ruth’s candid view on how close we really are to finding a cure for cancer.

Ruth also shares her “battle scars”, hiring philosophy, her vision for the future of teleportation technology, and the advice she would give to anyone looking to pivot their career successfully.A big thanks to the Google team in Riyadh for facilitating this shoot at their beautiful offices.

0:00 Intro

3:39 Leading Through the 2008 Financial Crisis

5:37 Flexibility vs. Rigidity in Career Paths

8:41 Thriving in Google’s Culture of Innovation

11:12 Google’s Approach to AI Competition

13:35 Unlocking Creativity with Gemini

17:14 Making Bold Bets at Google

19:20 Data Privacy and Security at Google

21:34 Google’s Investment in Saudi Arabia Vision 2030

27:58 Future Tech: Teleportation AI in Healthcare

32:10 Curing Cancer Personal Battle

35:40 Life Lessons: Risk, Learning, and Mentorship

40:02 Reflecting on Regrets and Closing