Mr Srinivas expressed astonishment, stating, “I have never witnessed such a scenario before.”
Aravind Srinivas, the Chief Executive Officer of the search engine Perplexity AI, recently recounted a fascinating incident highlighting the lengths to which major tech corporations are willing to go to retain valuable employees. In a discussion with Alex Kantrowitz, the host of the Big Technology Podcast, Mr Srinivas shared how Google made a substantial effort to retain a candidate that his company was attempting to recruit. He disclosed that Google not only matched the individual’s salary but actually “quadrupled” it, much to his surprise.
The conversation was shared by Mr Kantrowitz on X (formerly Twitter). He posted a clip of the exchange with the caption, “‘The moment he told them he’s going to join us, they quadrupled his offer’ – Perplexity CEO Aravind Srinivas on recruiting from Google (k, here’s the video).”
To view the video, click the link below:
“The moment he told them he’s going to join us, they quadrupled his offer” – Perplexity CEO @AravSrinivas on recruiting from Google (k, here’s the video) pic.twitter.com/HRhrLNPrHJ
— Alex Kantrowitz (@Kantrowitz) February 16, 2024
In the podcast discussion, Mr Srinivas recounted, “There was one remarkable candidate that I attempted to recruit from Google. This candidate was previously part of the Google search team, not the AI division. When he informed them of his decision to join us, they promptly quadrupled his offer,” he shared. “I have never seen anything quite like it,” he remarked.
Moreover, Mr Srinivas was questioned during the conversation about the reasons behind the significant layoffs in tech companies. In response, he mentioned, “Honestly, I am unsure about the specifics of who they are letting go. Is it performance-based or related to other factors, I do not have a definitive answer.”
“One insight I received is that they are releasing individuals with high compensation but relatively low productivity. In Google, one can be on vacation without repercussions, as the company is not significantly impacted. However, they have started to take notice, particularly with employees receiving substantial salaries,” he elaborated.
Since Mr Kantrowitz shared the clip on Friday, it has garnered over 388,000 views. In the comments section, several social media users expressed support for Google’s actions. While one individual stated, “This exemplifies a company understanding its core strengths and fiercely defending them,” another remarked, “It does not appear to be a sign of desperation on Alphabet’s part. It seems sustainable.”
A third commenter added, “Google is no longer tolerating this behavior. No more intimidation tactics. No more Mr. Nice Guy. They have been the primary contributors to AI research, and now startups are vying for our talent. Let’s start matching offers!”
