Sergey Brin once attempted to embrace retirement, but almost immediately realized that stepping away from the world of technology and discovery was a decision he could not sustain. Speaking recently at the centennial celebration of Stanford University’s School of Engineering, the Google cofounder offered an unusually candid reflection on this chapter of his life, describing how, in December 2019, he withdrew from his day-to-day operational role at the company with the expectation of enjoying serene, intellectually rich days—time that he imagined he would spend seated in cafés, reading and exploring topics in physics simply for the pleasure of learning. Yet what followed swiftly disrupted those tranquil plans: the sudden arrival of a global pandemic that shuttered cities, closed cafés, and confined people to their homes. Brin related this irony with a wry sense of humor, remarking that his vision of leisurely study “didn’t work because there were no more cafés.”
Still, the humor masked something deeper. Stripped of the intellectual challenge and creative momentum that had defined most of his adult life, Brin confessed that he began to feel himself declining—his mind losing the sharpness and focus that had once been its hallmark. He described a sense of “spiraling,” a recognition that without the continuous stimulation of solving complex problems, his energy and inventiveness were fading. Consequently, as soon as Google permitted a limited number of employees to return to its offices under new safety regulations, Brin was among the first to rejoin them. Immersing himself once again in an environment driven by bold experimentation, he found his renewed purpose in what would evolve into Gemini, Google’s flagship artificial intelligence model. This project reignited his creative drive. “Having that technical and creative outlet,” he explained, “is deeply fulfilling. In hindsight, staying retired would have been a serious mistake.”
Beyond recounting his personal journey, Brin offered an introspective critique of Google’s own path in the rapidly shifting landscape of AI. Although the company had published the seminal 2017 “Transformer” paper—a work that provided the conceptual foundation for nearly every modern AI system—he acknowledged that Google had, in his opinion, “underinvested” in the technology. The reason, he suggested, was not a lack of expertise but an excess of caution: fear that conversational AI might embarrass the company with inaccurate or awkward replies. In contrast, Brin observed, OpenAI took ambitious risks and decisively “ran with it,” an approach he commended, adding wryly, “good for them.”
Nevertheless, Brin asserted that Google maintained an enduring competitive strength derived from its decades-long commitment to neural network research, its custom-designed AI chips, and the immense computational scale of its global data centers—resources that very few organizations, he emphasized, could match. When asked what advice he would give to students facing a future where AI systems can already write code, Brin delivered a characteristically incisive warning: do not abandon technical fields out of fear that machines will replace human expertise. With a hint of humor, he cautioned, “I wouldn’t switch to comparative literature because you think AI is good at coding—the AI is probably even better at comparative literature.”
Turning to the topic of entrepreneurship, Brin also reflected on the most common—and costly—mistake that founders tend to make: releasing products too soon, before they are refined or economically viable. He admitted that he himself had fallen into this trap with Google Glass, the company’s early experiment in augmented reality. Convinced at the time that boldness alone could compensate for readiness, he moved too quickly. “Everybody thinks they’re the next Steve Jobs,” he said with disarming honesty. “I definitely made that mistake.”
Today, Brin is deeply immersed in Gemini, the AI project that has rekindled his enthusiasm and reaffirmed his lifelong fascination with the frontiers of computation and creativity. He expressed amazement at the unprecedented pace of progress that now defines the entire field of artificial intelligence. “The rate of innovation is absolutely astonishing,” he remarked. “If you disconnect from the news for even a month, you’ll find yourself already behind.” His words captured both his personal resurgence and the relentless momentum of the technological revolution he helped set in motion—proof that, for certain innovators, true retirement may simply be another form of reinvention.
Sourse: https://www.businessinsider.com/sergey-brin-says-leaving-google-before-gemini-was-big-mistake-2025-12
