Google CEO Sundar Pichai said he is proud of the overwhelming number of applicants being offered jobs, explaining the kind of talent the tech giant needs.
In an interview with David Rubenstein on Bloomberg TV that aired Thursday, Pichai said the rate is close to 90%. When asked what Google looks for in new entry-level hires, he said it depends on the type of position.
“If you’re in tech, we’re looking for really good programmers, people who understand computer science well and can be dynamically willing to learn and grow, apply themselves to new situations and do it well,” said Pichai. “But we’re really looking for superstar software engineers.”
Google, like the rest of the tech sector, went hiring in the wake of the pandemic, but laid off staff earlier this year as companies shifted their focus from growth to cost-cutting.
That has led to grumbling among some Googlers, who have also noticed a decline in workplace benefits, culminating in a meeting in May in which employees spoke out about lower morale and complained that they weren’t getting a fair share of the success enjoy the company.
Despite the previous cuts, the AI race continues to drive growth. As OpenAI, Meta, Amazon and Google ramp up their artificial intelligence efforts, they are spending billions of dollars on chips and other hardware while also bringing in top talent.
Google even uses AI in hiring. The company’s cloud computing division has been using AI since last fall to improve candidate matching and onboarding processes. The company has developed its own AI product, Gemini for Google Workspace, which it says has become intertwined with most stages of talent acquisition.
Tracey Arnish, head of HR at Google Cloud, explains Fortune in July that the team first began using AI to sift through the millions of employees who have applied for positions in recent years.
And when the hiring committee meets to review a group of applicants, Google Gemini is deployed to collect all relevant internal feedback about the individuals.
Meanwhile, Pichai still believes in free food, despite the costs involved.
“People appreciate personal collaboration,” he told Rubenstein earlier in the interview. “I can remember a number of times early on at Google where I would sit in cafes and meet someone else and talk and get excited about something. So it stimulates creativity, creates community. And I think the benefit of that resulting from it is much smaller than the costs associated with it.”
This story originally appeared on Fortune.com
