Latest news with #VarunMohan
Yahoo
01-08-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
More details emerge on how Windsurf's VCs and founders got paid from the Google deal
Weeks after the revelation that Google paid Windsurf $2.4 billion to license its technology, while simultaneously hiring away its CEO and top talent, the deal's implications are still rattling some founders and startup employees across Silicon Valley. Google's payment to the startup was effectively split in two equal parts, according to two people familiar with the deal. Investors' portion was $1.2 billion. The other half was in the form of compensation packages for approximately 40 Windsurf employees hired by the tech giant with a substantial portion of that $1.2 billion going to the startup's co-founders, Varun Mohan and Douglas Chen, sources say. The transaction was a good outcome for VCs, which included Greenoaks, Kleiner Perkins, and General Catalyst. Windsurf raised a total of about $243 million as of its last raise in 2024 that valued the company at $1.25 billion, which means the total return to investors was about 4x their original funding. Greenoaks, which led Windsurf's seed and Series A financings and owned 20% of the company, returned about $500 million on their $65 million investment in the startup, according to a person familiar with the matter. Kleiner Perkins, which led Windsurf's Series B, returned about 3x its invested capital, according to another person familiar with the deal. Google, Kleiner Perkins, and Greenoaks declined to comment. General Catalyst, Varun Mohan, and Douglas Chen didn't respond to a request for comment. Even so, most investors were aiming for a more significant win from the company. In February, TechCrunch reported that Kleiner Perkins was in talks to lead a fresh round of funding valuing the startup, which was then known as Codeium, at a $2.85 billion valuation. That deal didn't happen, according to a person familiar with the matter, because Windsurf had instead agreed to be purchased by OpenAI for $3 billion. As we all know now, the OpenAI acquisition unraveled and Google swooped in with its deal structured to offer investor returns, obtain talent and IP without acquiring stock. But what's rattling the Valley is this: while Google's deal was good for the co-founders and VCs, it didn't benefit a large portion of Windsurf's approximately 250 employees, especially after they were expecting a payout from the sale to OpenAI. In a typical acquisition, employees would get money for the shares they owned, and often have their vesting schedule accelerated. However, Windsurf employees who were hired over the last year didn't receive a payout from the deal, these people said. The Google deal was especially unsettling to approximately 200 Windsurf employees not hired by the search giant. Instead of siphoning every penny of Google's payment into their own pockets, investors opted to leave the company with over $100 million in capital. One source says this was entirely funded by VCs, meaning their total payout was about $1.1 billion. However, another person said that the founders' equally chipped in to leave the company with a nest egg from the Google payment. Multiple people said that the money left for the company would have been sufficient to pay all remaining employees proceeds at Google deal's per-share valuation, regardless of how long they had been with the company. However, to have done that immediately would have been problematic, leaving the company with less cash to operate and – with founders, key people gone – with no investors ready to finance a new raise. The remaining leadership would likely have had to shut down after making such cash distributions, one of the people said. Meanwhile, another person claimed that the company had enough capital to pay out employees and continue to operate. That difference of opinion is only part of the reason the deal became so controversial. What's more, at least some of the employees Google did hire, despite attractive pay and benefits, saw their stock grants revoked and their vesting timelines restarted. That meant they'd have to wait an additional four years for their total payout in Google stock, according to people familiar with the deal. Some top VC condemned the three-year-old startup's co-founders for not sharing their windfall with all the people who helped build the company. 'Windsurf and others are really bad examples of founders leaving their teams behind and not even sharing the proceeds with their team,' wrote Vinod Khosla on X. 'I definitely would not work with their founders next time.' After several days of limbo following the announcement of the Google deal, Windsurf's remaining entity, under the leadership of interim CEO Jeff Wang, managed to sell itself to Cognition. Cognition acquired Windsurf's IP and product, and brought on all staff not hired by Google. While the exact deal terms of that sale were no't disclosed, the acquisition allowed every employee to financially gain from the sale, according to a blog published by Cognition. Two other sources estimated to TechCrunch that Cognition paid $250 million to acquire Windsurf's remaining entity. Cognition didn't respond to a request for comment.
TechCrunch
01-08-2025
- Business
- TechCrunch
More details emerge on how Windsurf's VCs and founders got paid from the Google deal
Even weeks after the revelation that Google paid Windsurf $2.4 billion to license its technology, while simultaneously hiring away its CEO and top talent, the deal's implications are still rattling some founders and startup employees across Silicon Valley. Google's payment to the startup was effectively split in two equal parts, according to two people familiar with the deal. Investors' portion was $1.2 billion. The other half was in the form of compensation packages for approximately 40 Windsurf employees hired by the tech giant with a substantial portion of that $1.2 billion going to the startup's co-founders, Varun Mohan and Douglas Chen, sources say. The transaction was a good outcome for VCs, which included Greenoaks, Kleiner Perkins, and General Catalyst. Windsurf raised a total of about $243 million as of its last raise in 2024 that valued the company at $1.25 billion, which means the total return to investors was about four times their original funding. Greenoaks, which led Windsurf's seed and Series A financings and owned 20% of the company, returned about $500 million on their $65 million investment in the startup, according to a person familiar with the matter. Kleiner Perkins, which led Windsurf's Series B, returned about three times its invested capital, according to another person familiar with the deal. Google, Kleiner Perkins, and Greenoaks declined to comment. General Catalyst, Varun Mohan, and Douglad Chen didn't respond to a request for comment. Even so, most investors were aiming for a more significant win from the company. Techcrunch event Tech and VC heavyweights join the Disrupt 2025 agenda Netflix, ElevenLabs, Wayve, Sequoia Capital — just a few of the heavy hitters joining the Disrupt 2025 agenda. They're here to deliver the insights that fuel startup growth and sharpen your edge. Don't miss the 20th anniversary of TechCrunch Disrupt, and a chance to learn from the top voices in tech — grab your ticket now and save up to $675 before prices rise. Tech and VC heavyweights join the Disrupt 2025 agenda Netflix, ElevenLabs, Wayve, Sequoia Capital — just a few of the heavy hitters joining the Disrupt 2025 agenda. They're here to deliver the insights that fuel startup growth and sharpen your edge. Don't miss the 20th anniversary of TechCrunch Disrupt, and a chance to learn from the top voices in tech — grab your ticket now and save up to $675 before prices rise. San Francisco | REGISTER NOW In February, TechCrunch reported that Kleiner Perkins was in talks to lead a fresh round of funding valuing the startup, which was then known as Codeium, at a $2.85 billion valuation. That deal didn't happen, according to a person familiar with the matter, because Windsurf had instead agreed to be purchased by OpenAI for $3 billion. As we all know now, the OpenAI acquisition unraveled and Google swooped in with its deal structured to offer investor returns, obtain talent and IP without acquiring stock. But what's rattling the Valley is this: while Google's deal was good for the co-founders and VCs, it didn't benefit a large portion of Windsurf's approximately 250 employees, especially after they were expecting a payout from the sale to OpenAI. In a typical acquisition, employees would get money for the shares they owned, and often have their vesting schedule accelerated. However, Windsurf employees who were hired over the last year didn't receive a payout from the deal, these people said. The Google deal was especially unsettling to approximately 200 Windsurf employees not hired by the search giant. Instead of siphoning every penny of Google's payment into their own pockets, investors opted to leave the company with over $100 million in capital. One source says this was entirely funded by VCs, meaning their total payout was about $1.1 billion. However, another person said that the founders' equally chipped in to leave the company with a nest egg from the Google payment. Multiple people said that the money left for the company would have been sufficient to pay all remaining employees proceeds at Google deal's per-share valuation, regardless of how long they had been with the company. However, to have done that immediately would have been problematic, leaving the company with less cash to operate and – with founders, key people gone – with no investors ready to finance a new raise. The remaining leadership would likely have had to shut down after making such cash distributions, one of the people said. Meanwhile, another person claimed that the company had enough capital to pay out employees and continue to operate. That difference of opinion is only part of the reason the deal became so controversial. What's more, at least some of the employees Google did hire, despite attractive pay and benefits, saw their stock grants revoked and their vesting timelines restarted. That meant they'd have to wait an additional four years for their total payout in Google stock, according to people familiar with the deal. Some top VC condemned the three-year-old startup's co-founders for not sharing their windfall with all the people who helped build the company. 'Windsurf and others are really bad examples of founders leaving their teams behind and not even sharing the proceeds with their team,' wrote Vinod Khosla on X. 'I definitely would not work with their founders next time.' After several days of limbo following the announcement of the Google deal, Windsurf's remaining entity, under the leadership of interim CEO Jeff Wang, managed to sell itself to Cognition. Cognition acquired Windsurf's IP and product, and brought on all staff not hired by Google. While the exact deal terms of that sale were no't disclosed, the acquisition allowed every employee to financially gain from the sale, according to a blog published by Cognition. Two other sources estimated to TechCrunch that Cognition paid $250 million to acquire Windsurf's remaining entity. Cognition didn't respond to a request for comment.
Hindustan Times
30-07-2025
- Business
- Hindustan Times
🧠 Neural Dispatch: Google's student outreach, Jensen Huang's praise for Chinese AI, and Meta's Prometheus
ALGORITHM In this edition, we chat about Google's offer for a free AI Pro subscription for students in India, what exactly is the status with Windsurf (at least at the time of writing this), and Meta's Prometheus project and what it means for the still vague superintelligence conversations. Google's free AI, but what does free mean? Google launched a free one-year Gemini Pro subscription for Indian students (mind you, must be above the age of 18, with a valid student ID and a working university email address), basically the Google AI Pro plan that includes access to premium tools including Gemini, Gemini Live, Deep Research, NotebookLM (with 5x limits), Gemini Live, Veo 3 for AI video creation, and AI integration across Gmail as well as Docs, and 2TB worth of cloud storage space on Drive. This looks great value on paper, and for 12 months, it certainly will be – it's strategic attempt at cornering the market. Google is hoping an entire generation of Indian students, who'd grow up to perhaps become developers, researchers, and entrepreneurs, pledges allegiance to its AI ecosystem. Much like enterprise business, and every bit of that is a long term bet. Think of it this way, once you start using Google AI Pro, the chances of going back to a Google One plan that's inferior, reside between little and zero. And that's when students or their parents will be spending ₹19,500 annually, to continue the subscription. Students must register by September 15 this year. Expect more AI companies to release similar offers for students in India. Neural Windsurf wars, AI's billion-dollar thriller Silicon Valley witnessed its most dramatic corporate saga this week as AI coding startup Windsurf became the center of a multi-billion-dollar acquisition battle involving every major tech giant. OpenAI's planned $3 billion acquisition of Windsurf collapsed in mid-July (Microsoft may have had something to do with it, as was the public displeasure expressed by Windsurf model-provider Anthropic). The collapse triggered a domino effect that revealed the brutal dynamics of AI competition. Google swooped in immediately, hiring Windsurf CEO Varun Mohan and co-founder Douglas Chen along with key staff for its DeepMind unit in what sources describe as a $2.4 billion deal — think of this as not a formal acquisition but a licensing agreement plus a hiring deal. Google did not buy Windsurf. It poached talent and licensed IP, which may or may not be exclusive. But the story didn't end there. Cognition, maker of AI coding agent Devin, announced it would acquire Windsurf's remaining intellectual property, product, trademark, brand and talent, effectively splitting the company between Google and Cognition. The saga is somehow (most likely an unintended consequence) illustrating how AI model access has become a weapon: Anthropic cut Windsurf's direct access to Claude models because of OpenAI acquisition rumours, with co-founder Jared Kaplan stating "it would be odd for us to be selling Claude to OpenAI". For businesses, this perhaps reveals fragility in AI supply chains – access to critical models can be used as leverage. Meta's Prometheus, and a super-intelligence timeline No one knows what exactly super-intelligence will be like, or when it'll truly see the light of the day. But well, that's keeping the AI system busy these days, and so be it. Meta says its 1-gigawatt AI supercluster "Prometheus" will come online in 2026, making it one of the first tech companies to control an AI data center of this scale. Mark Zuckerberg revealed plans to spend "hundreds of billions of dollars" on AI infrastructure, with Prometheus part of a larger initiative to build multiple multi-gigawatt clusters. This supercluster is located in New Albany, Ohio Meta's bid for AI supremacy, chapter 2? The scale is unprecedented, mind you – 1 gigawatt could power 700,000 homes. This clearly isn't just about better chatbots; it's about training models that could achieve artificial general intelligence, or AGI. For businesses, it could signal AI capabilities will soon dwarf current limitations, and optics may well work for AI companies in the meantime. The investment also reveals Meta's long-term vision: controlling the infrastructure that powers the next generation of AI, potentially becoming the "electricity company" of artificial intelligence. The arms race is intensifying – OpenAI, Google, and Microsoft are all racing to build similar mega-clusters, suggesting the next phase of AI development will be defined by raw computational power working alongside algorithmic innovation. PROMPT AI This week, we'll chat about an AI tool called Runway ML's Gen-3 Video Generator. This AI tool can be used to eventually create what may be called as 'professional-quality' videos, from the text prompts or images that you provide. Runway's AI subscription tiers start with a free one that includes a one-time credit bundle for generations, but for anything genuinely useful, you'll be paying either $12 per month for the Standard plan (access to Gen-4 and Gen-3 models with 625 monthly credits and 100GB storage), $28 for the Pro plan (adds custom voices for lip-sync and text to speech as well as 500GB storage), or the top-tier Unlimited plan for $76 that, as the name suggests, that gets you unlimited generations of Gen-4 Turbo, Gen-4 (Image and Video), Gen-3 Alpha Turbo, Gen-3 Alpha as well as Act-One in Explore mode (though not the newer Act-Two). Here's how you go about it > Choose your input method: Text prompt (For instance: 'A golden retriever playing in a park at sunset") or upload an image to animate > Set parameters such as duration, aspect ratio, and style preferences > click on Generate. Even after the generation, you can still further refine the generation, by editing the original prompt. Along the way, detailed prompts that mention what sort of lighting, camera angles, and movement you want, will get the generation closer to what you want — for instance, 'close-up of hands typing on a MacBook, soft morning light, shallow depth of field" works better than "person typing on a laptop.' Keep in mind: Human faces still have visible inconsistencies (that's a common fixture across video generation models), as do any generations of a product (if it is a phone for instance, app icons may look weird). Secondly, be careful what you use it for though, because platforms such as YouTube will certainly give less weightage to content that is AI generated. Interesting use-cases may emerge though, in the workplace. THINKING 'Models like DeepSeek, Alibaba, Tencent, MiniMax, and Baidu Ernie bot are world class, developed here and shared openly [and] have spurred AI developments worldwide.' Jensen Huang, NVIDIA CEO, at the China International Supply Chain Expo in Beijing, July 16, 2025 The context: Huang made these comments, just as Nvidia announced it will resume sales of its H20 AI chips to China. The timing isn't coincidental. Huang also called China's open-source AI a "catalyst for global progress" and said it is "revolutionising" supply chains. This comes from the CEO whose company last week became the first to touch $4 trillion in market value – largely thanks to AI chip demand. A reality check: Huang's statement can be seen as a direct contradiction of the narrative and indeed the policy in the US, where export controls are very much in place. By publicly acknowledging Chinese AI models as "world class," is Huang hinting (or challenging the Trump administration?) that restrictions haven't really worked? Huang's praise for Chinese companies specifically references an open-source approach to AI, a stark contrast to the closed and proprietary model approach that most big tech companies in the US and elsewhere have followed. The question therefore is — if Chinese AI models truly match Western capabilities while being open-source, why would consumers, businesses and enterprises pay premium subscription prices for something from OpenAI or Anthropic or Meta? The fine distinction here is, and you may have noticed I'm not including Google in the list, because their Workplace bundles add a lot more to the platter. Think of Huang's praise as part diplomatic politeness, and part strategic positioning. Earlier this year, he warned that "China is not behind" in AI and called Huawei "one of the most formidable technology companies in the world". Does this lend credence to an argument that the global AI landscape is multipolar, not American-dominated, as is often perceived to be? Neural Dispatch is your weekly decoder ring for the AI revolution. Forward this to a colleague or a friend who needs to understand what's really happening in artificial intelligence.
Yahoo
25-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights GOOGL, MAGS, IXP, FCOM, VOX and XLC
For Immediate Release Chicago, IL – July 25, 2025 – announces the list of stocks and ETFs featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks and ETFs recently featured in the blog include: Alphabet GOOGL, Roundhill Magnificent Seven ETF MAGS, iShares Global Comm Services ETF IXP, Fidelity MSCI Communication Services Index ETF FCOM, Vanguard Communication Services ETF VOX and Communication Services Select Sector SPDR Fund XLC. Here are highlights from Thursday's Analyst Blog: ETFs to Soar Post-Alphabet's Strong Q2 Earnings Results After the closing bell on Wednesday, Google parent Alphabet reported solid second-quarter 2025 results, topping both revenue and earnings estimates. The tech giant also raised its capital expenditures forecast for the year, signaling a more aggressive investment push into AI infrastructure. As such, shares of GOOGL jumped as much as 3% in after-market trading on an elevated volume. Investors should tap the strength with ETFs having a double-digit allocation to Alphabet. Earnings in Focus Earnings per share came in at $2.31, easily outpacing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.15 and improving 22% from the year-ago quarter. This marks the tenth consecutive quarter of earnings beat. Revenues grew 14% year over year to $96.43 billion. Alphabet's Google Cloud business revenues grew 32% year over year to $13.62 billion, bolstered by a new partnership with OpenAI, which announced plans to use Google's infrastructure to power its ChatGPT platform. The company's search unit brought in $54.19 billion in revenues despite stiff AI competition. Advertising revenues were $71.34 billion, up about 10.4% year over year. YouTube division revenues grew 13.8% to $9.8 million during the second quarter. Google CEO Sundar Pichai revealed that the company's AI Overviews, which summarize search results, now reach over 2 billion monthly users across more than 200 countries, up from 1.5 billion last quarter. The Gemini app, home to Google's AI chatbot, has surpassed 450 million monthly active users. Alphabet's cloud computing business is on pace to bring in $50 billion over the course of the year (read: Will Nasdaq ETFs Continue Their Rally Going Into Q2 Earnings?). Alphabet is also investing heavily in AI talent. Earlier this month, the company acquired AI coding startup Windsurf in a $2.4 billion deal, bringing in CEO Varun Mohan and top researchers, along with licensing its technology. The company raised its capital expenditures forecast to $85 billion for this year, up $10 billion from February, due to 'strong and growing demand for the Cloud products and services.' ETFs in Focus Roundhill Magnificent Seven ETF Roundhill Magnificent Seven ETF is the first-ever ETF that offers investors equal-weight exposure to 'Magnificent Seven' stocks. Alphabet accounts for a 15.3% share in the basket. MAGS has amassed $2.4 billion in its asset base and charges 29 bps in fees per year. It trades in an average daily volume of 2 million shares (read: Mag 7 ETFs Surge: Will the Rally Keep Rolling?). iShares Global Comm Services ETFiShares Global Comm Services ETF provides global exposure to companies in media, entertainment, social media, search engine, video/gaming and telecommunication services by tracking the S&P Global 1200 Communication Services 4.5/22.5/45 Capped Index. It holds 69 stocks in its basket, with Alphabet taking the second spot at 12.8%. Interactive media & services dominates the fund's return at 52.4%, followed by integrated telecommunication services (17.8%). iShares Global Comm Services ETF has amassed $542.9 million in its asset base while trading at an average daily volume of 39,000 shares. The expense ratio comes in at 0.41%. IXP has a Zacks ETF Rank #3 with a Medium risk outlook. Fidelity MSCI Communication Services Index ETF Fidelity MSCI Communication Services Index ETF follows the MSCI USA IMI Communication Services 25/50 Index. It holds 105 stocks in its basket, with Alphabet occupying the second position at a combined 12.7%. Fidelity MSCI Communication Services Index ETF has amassed $1.6 billion in its asset base and trades in an average daily volume of 108,000 shares. It charges 8 bps in annual fees and has a Zacks ETF Rank #3 (Hold) with a Medium risk outlook (see: all the Communication ETFs here). Vanguard Communication Services ETF Vanguard Communication Services ETF targets the communication sector by tracking the MSCI US Investable Market Communication Services 25/50 Index. Holding 118 stocks in its basket, Alphabet takes the second spot at 12.5% of the portfolio. Interactive media & services is the top sector, accounting for 51.1% of the portfolio, while movies & entertainment, cable & satellite, and integrated telecommunication services round off the next three. Vanguard Communication Services ETF has AUM of $5.2 billion and trades in a good volume of 178,000 shares a day, on average. It charges 9 bps in annual fees and has a Zacks ETF Rank #3 with a Medium risk outlook. Communication Services Select Sector SPDR Fund Communication Services Select Sector SPDR Fund offers exposure to companies from telecommunication services, media, entertainment and interactive media & services. It has accumulated $24 billion in its asset base. It follows the Communication Services Select Sector Index and holds 24 stocks in its basket, with Alphabet occupying the second position with a 10.4% share. About 38% of the portfolio is allocated to interactive media & services, while entertainment and media round off the next two. Communication Services Select Sector SPDR Fund charges 8 bps in annual fees and trades in an average daily volume of 5 million shares. It has a Zacks ETF Rank #2 (Buy). Want key ETF info delivered straight to your inbox? Zacks' free Fund Newsletter will brief you on top news and analysis, as well as top-performing ETFs, each week. Get it free >> Zacks Investment Research 800-767-3771 ext. 9339 support@ Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL) : Free Stock Analysis Report Vanguard Communication Services ETF (VOX): ETF Research Reports Fidelity MSCI Communication Services Index ETF (FCOM): ETF Research Reports iShares Global Comm Services ETF (IXP): ETF Research Reports Communication Services Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLC): ETF Research Reports This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research ( Zacks Investment Research Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
CNBC
23-07-2025
- Business
- CNBC
Alphabet to report Q2 earnings after the bell
Alphabet is set to report its second-quarter earnings after the bell Wednesday. Here's what analysts polled by LSEG are expecting: Wall Street is also watching these numbers in the report: Alphabet is among the megacaps expected to be a major driver of earnings growth during the second-quarter earnings season. Wall Street is anticipating the search giant to report a 10.9% increase in revenue and 15% growth in earnings per share. Shares of Alphabet haven't moved much this year, lagging the other Magnificent Seven stocks and the S&P 500. Investors are primarily concerned about the rise of artificial intelligence chatbots, which could impact Google's ability to remain competitive in search. During the second quarter, the search giant rolled out a number of new AI products. At its annual Google I/O conference in May, Google announced a new subscription tier, called "Google AI Ultra," that offers access to the company's "cutting edge" AI features for $249.99 per month. Google also unveiled its return to the smart glasses market with a $150 million partnership with Warby Parker — the two companies said they plan to launch a series of smart glasses as soon as next year. Google in May also announced a venture fund to invest in AI startups. As part of the "AI Futures Fund," eligible startups will receive Google investment, early access to AI models, and hands-on support from Google researchers, engineers and go-to-market specialists. They also get credits to use on Google Cloud. Additionally in May, Google began testing the placement of its "AI Mode" product on its home page, directly beneath the Google search. Earlier this month, OpenAI added Google to its list of suppliers, saying it expects to use the search company's cloud infrastructure for its popular ChatGPT service. The announcement represented a win for Google, whose cloud unit is younger and smaller than those of Amazon and Microsoft. Google made a splash in the AI talent wars, announcing it would bring in Windsurf CEO Varun Mohan and other top researchers at the artificial intelligence coding startup as part of a $2.4 billion deal that also includes licensing the company's technology. Internally, Google also made a number of personnel changes during the quarter. The company added the new role of chief AI architect when it elevated Koray Kavukcuoglu from his position as Google DeepMind's chief technology officer in June. Google also made more workforce reductions by offering buyouts to U.S.-based employees across several of its divisions, including search, ads and commerce. Alphabet made several strides with Waymo, its self-driving car unit, during the quarter. Waymo reached 100 million "real world, fully autonomous miles" driven on public roads, the company said last week. Waymo also announced expansions into new markets. In June, Waymo announced plans to drive vehicles manually in New York, marking the first step toward potentially cracking the largest U.S. city. In July, the company said it will do limited testing in Philadelphia and it began offering accounts for teens ages 14 to 17, starting in Phoenix. The company also endured some less-flattering optics during the quarter. In June, Google's cloud suffered significant global outages knocking down or disrupting dozens of large internet services, including OpenAI and Shopify, among others.
