Sundar Pichai: Google’s Next CEO Will Be Aided by an Extraordinary AI Companion

San Francisco, June 7 – In a futuristic vision that underscores the growing symbiosis between human leadership and artificial intelligence, Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai has said that Google’s next CEO will likely have an “extraordinary AI companion” by their side.

Speaking at the Bloomberg Tech Conference in San Francisco, Pichai outlined how he sees artificial intelligence transforming not just daily workflows, but also executive decision-making at the highest levels of global companies.

Pichai emphasized that AI is not intended to replace human leadership but to act as a powerful assistant — or “co-pilot” — that enhances productivity and enables bolder innovation. “I just view this as making engineers dramatically more productive, getting a lot of the mundane aspects out of what they do,” Pichai said.

He revealed that he personally experiments with AI tools like Replit and Cursor for "vibe coding" — creating custom webpages and apps using simple prompts, effectively bypassing complex coding processes.

The remarks come at a time of heightened global discussion on AI’s role in the workforce. While many fear that automation will replace jobs, Pichai struck an optimistic tone, asserting that AI should be viewed as a partner, not a threat.

Pichai also addressed the long-term possibilities of artificial general intelligence (AGI). “Are we currently on an absolute path to AGI? I don’t think anyone can say for sure,” he remarked, noting that while current models excel at certain tasks like coding, they still make basic errors.

Despite the rise of automation, Pichai said Alphabet remains committed to human talent, especially in engineering. “We are hiring more people, not fewer,” he added.