Google CEO: The whole industry is short on computing power

The entire AI industry is short on computing power. That's according to Google CEO Sundar Pichai in an interview with the outlet Big Technology. Here are the key takeaways from the conversation.

All the information comes from Pichai's own statements. Apple and independent sources have not confirmed it.

Apple and Siri

Google licenses its Gemini AI model to Apple, and the models are used to improve Apple's voice assistant Siri. According to Pichai, Apple has done an excellent job adapting the models and building them into Siri. He calls the response to the result good.

Pichai also says Google wants to do more with Apple: "We are committed to doing more." He does not say what that entails in practice. Terms, scope and timeline are not stated in the sources, so it is a statement of intent.

Computing power shortage

Pichai explains that today's capacity reflects decisions made in 2024. As a result, the entire industry is short on computing power, and according to him, everyone wants twice what is planned.

Google's cloud business grew 82 percent in the most recent quarter, according to Big Technology. It is not clear whether that refers to revenue or something else. Pichai says Google Cloud is forgoing short-term revenue because capacity is being prioritized for developing advanced AI, so-called frontier AI.

He also sees the constraints as a possible source of creativity and more efficient algorithms.

AI that improves itself

Pichai believes the industry is far from the end stage of recursive self-improvement. That means AI improving itself without human involvement. He says, however, that AI agents, meaning programs that solve tasks on their own, are already being used alongside AI researchers in parts of the development of new models.

Plans: One agent and chips in space

Google is working on a unified agent that can be used across Workspace, Search and Gemini and reach services such as Gmail. Pichai sees it as the interface of the future. It is a plan, not something that is ready yet.

Google has also sent TPU chips, which are specialized AI chips, into space as part of Project Suncatcher. Pichai expects a "Hello World" moment from them. He compares the project to Waymo, a technically demanding moonshot that could pay off in 10-20 years.