Around 200 students at Stanford University staged a walkout during the university’s 2026 graduation ceremony while Google CEO Sundar Pichai was delivering his commencement address. The protest, organised by Students for Justice in Palestine and No Tech for Apartheid, was directed at Google’s contracts with the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF), the Department of Homeland Security, and ICE.
As Pichai took the stage, students stood up, waved Palestinian flags, blew whistles, and chanted slogans. Many were also seen wearing keffiyehs, a traditional scarf worn as a symbol of solidarity with Palestinians.
Why Did Students Walk Out On Sundar Pichai At Stanford?
Videos from the ceremony showed students leaving the stadium in their graduation gowns and caps, with some booing as they walked out. Pichai, a Stanford alumnus, continued his speech despite the disruption.
“I must warn you all, this is only the second commencement speech that I have ever given. The first was literally in my backyard,” Pichai said during his address.
Stanford grads walk out as Google CEO Sundar Pichai takes the stage as commencement speaker. No mention of AI, unlike other uni speakers getting booed down this year. Story for @sfgate shortly pic.twitter.com/qvS2rJ91Ip
— Matt Brown (@maattttbrown) June 14, 2026
The walkout was tied to Project Nimbus, a $1.2 billion cloud computing contract between Google and the Israeli government. Pro-Palestinian activists have criticised the deal, accusing Google of supporting Israel through its technology services.
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After leaving the ceremony, many of the protesting students attended a separate event called the “People’s Commencement,” which featured Mahmoud Khalil as the keynote speaker, according to SFGate. Khalil had been detained by US immigration authorities for more than 100 days over his involvement in pro-Palestinian activism at Columbia University in 2024.
Did Sundar Pichai Avoid Talking About AI At Stanford?
Notably, Pichai did not mention artificial intelligence during his address, even though job displacement from AI remains a key concern among graduates.
Other tech leaders, including former Google CEO Eric Schmidt, were booed at university events earlier this year after speaking positively about AI, at a time when many graduates were struggling to find work amid layoffs in the tech sector.
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Last month, on the podcast Hard Fork, Pichai was asked how he would handle potential boos at Stanford. He said he remains confident about young people and their future, adding that even students who are critical of AI will help shape how the technology develops in the coming years.
