Congress of the United States Washington, DC 20515 May 18, 2020 Mr. Sundar Pichai CEO Google Inc. 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway Mountain View, CA 94043 Dear Mr. Pichai, We write today to express concerns over recent reports that Google has purposefully scaled back or eliminated diversity and inclusions training programs at the company. It is no secret that companies across Silicon Valley and the tech sector have struggled to increase diversity, and Google is no exception. It is troublesome to hear that Google, an industry leader plans to scale back efforts to address their lack of diversity when you have previously stated a corporate commitment to improve in this very area. The tech sector has become one of the most important drivers of America’s economy and our global culture. In so many innovative respects Google has been a cultural pacesetter that has led the way. Not only do you offer products and services that respond to the everyday needs of our communities, you offer high paying jobs that help steer the course of our domestic economy. In 2019, according to Google’s own diversity report1 only 3.3 percent of your workforce identifies as Black, 5.7 percent are Latinx, .08 percent are Native American, and 31.6 percent are women. In order to promote effective and inclusive economic practices, Google’s workforce should reflect the racial diversity of America. However, Google is still falling short of that goal, and compared to the population of the United States, women and minorities are grossly unrepresented in your ranks. While that concern is not the principal focus of this letter, it is important to note as you all scale back efforts to address these concerns.2 As a visible brand and tech leader, it is our hope that Google would demonstrate leadership in empowering and supporting women and minorities in their workforce. In that spirit, we ask that Google move beyond simply “doing no harm”, to becoming part of the solution. A company that is a leader in artificial intelligence should be acutely aware of the harm that bias can have on underrepresented populations. Specifically, as members of the House Tech Accountability Caucus, we would like to hear from you and your leadership about the following: 1. Why were the previous diversity programs scaled back and/or cut entirely? 1 Google Diversity Annual Report 2019 NBC News, “Current and ex-employees allege Google drastically rolled back diversity and inclusion programs,” https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/current-ex-employees-allege-google-drastically-rolled-back-diversityinclusion-n1206181 2 2. What diversity initiatives does Google currently provide for new hires? 3. Does Google plan to create one uniform diversity and inclusion program or culturally competent programs for different countries and regions? 4. What does Google plan to do to address the lack of diversity and inclusion at Google? 5. Do employees working in artificial intelligence undergo additional bias training? We thank you in advance for your willingness to engage in this dialogue and welcome the opportunity to serve as a resource to you as you address these diversity concerns. Sincerely, /S/ ______ Robin L. Kelly Member of Congress /S/ ______ Yvette D. Clarke Member of Congress /S/ ______ Andre Carson Member of Congress /S/ ______ Mike Quigley Member of Congress /S/ ______ Kathy Castor Member of Congress /S/ ______ Henry C. “Hank” Johnson, Jr., Member of Congress /S/ ______ Emanuel Cleaver, II Member of Congress /S/ ______ Joyce Beatty Member of Congress /S/ ______ Bonnie Watson Coleman Member of Congress /S/ ______ Janice D. Schakowsky Member of Congress