Google Bard, Shareholder Pressure, and Truth

Google recently lost 100 billion dollars in valuation after its share price plummeted more than 7%. The slide started with Google announcing weaker-than-expected quarterly results. However, it accelerated after the organization launched an advert for its chatbot Bard. 

Google had launched the advertisement and planned a follow-up session in Paris. A few hours after launching the ad, Fortune magazine reported that several experts pointed out flaws in Bard’s answer. This video breaks down the whole tussle between Microsoft and Google and why Google’s stock lost more than 100 billion dollars. 

While Microsoft conducted a perfect event where they communicated how Chat GPT and Open AI would integrate into Bing and other Microsoft Tools, Google conducted a rushed and hasty session where their presenters seemed to reflect the confusion prevalent in the company. 

The following quote from Satya Nadella best sums up the state of affairs. 

The “new Bing” will make rival Google “come out and show that they can dance. And I want people to know that we made them dance, and I think that’ll be a great day. 

The question I want to divine today is why organizations react the way they do when faced with headwinds of change. It’s easy to pick on Google today, but the same Microsoft made a series of bad decisions when Google beat them in the Search and mobile OS markets.  

Why do the 800-pound Gorillas get so nervous when a newcomer challenges them? The answer generally centered around managing shareholder expectations. Most large technology organizations no longer answer to small individual investors like you and me. Their stakeholders now include large venture capital firms and banks always looking for short-term returns on their balance sheets. A CEO’s job is to convince the shareholders that the organization will give the maximum appreciation for their investment. That’s why the Google CEO cannot issue a statement saying they have the largest market share for Search worldwide and have billions invested in AI. It’s only a matter of time before they catch up, and when they do so, they will dominate the market again. CEOs are constantly worried that institutional shareholders will dump their shares, which would lead to a freefall. That’s one of the reasons why Google had to signal intent by conducting this hastily arranged demo and why the shares plunged in the aftermath. 

This obsession with managing shareholder expectations is why organizations paint a flawless portrait for analysts. They are constantly worried that shareholders and competitors would ruthlessly exploit any show of vulnerability. The same behaviors trickle down to the senior leadership and the employees. False bravado and micro-aggression are rewarded, and genuine moments of doubt and anxiety are suppressed. 

How do you think the texts of Sanatana Dharma deal with this scenario? Did we always show our saints are epitomes of perfection, or did we portray them to have the same vulnerabilities that haunt us? Let me share a small story that should help us with the answer. 

The Story of Maharishi Ved Vyasa

The great Sage Ved Vyasa had a son Sukhdevji Maharaj. Since he was born out of Sage Vyasa’s intense austerity for a hundred years, he has had miraculous powers. Sukhdevji Maharaj just got up, rubbed the ashes of the fire on his body, and started walking. When his father asked him to stop and at least spend some time with him, Sukhdev’s issued a stunning response. 

“After being such a big ascetic, how can you talk like a fool? You left your mother as a young boy. Your father, Rishi Parashar, also left you to pursue his Dharma. 

kastvam koham kuta āyātah kā me jananī ko me tātah

Who is the father, and who is the mother? These are all worldly relationships and are untrue. 

Sukhdevji Maharaj starts walking, and Ved Vyasa starts walking behind him because he cannot stop himself. They cross a lake where celestial nymphs are bathing. Maharishi Ved Vyas notices the nymphs do not even notice Sukh Dev passing by but immediately cover themselves when he walks past them. He is genuinely puzzled and asks them why they are conscious of his presence. Here is what he says. 

” I am the one who is called Ved Vyasa. Vyasa means the one who divided. Our shastras that are not of human origin, I have divided even them into four. There is nothing inaccessible, rare, or impossible for me. My son has just taken birth. He has not done any penance. He is young. You saw him and continued bathing. The moment you saw me, you covered your body. I did not understand this.” 

The nymphs responded by stating that when they saw Sukhdev walking, they sensed that he could not even tell the difference between male or female and young or old. He just saw everyone as the same universal divine. However, when Vyasa walked by, they sensed he saw them as women, so they covered themselves.

Think about the confidence and truth that Sanatana Dharma has in its teachings, that it shows even its greatest sages with human qualities and failings. This is not an isolated incident. We read of Sage Durvasa and Vishwamitra’s temper. The same sage Vashistha who taught Lord Rama tried to commit suicide by jumping into the river because asuras killed his entire family. So many sages and Indra himself got distracted on the path and started all over again. 

That’s why Lord Krishna says the following verse in the Srimad Bhagwat Gita. 

yatato hyapi kaunteya puruṣhasya vipaśhchitaḥ

indriyāṇi pramāthīni haranti prasabhaṁ manaḥ

The senses are so strong and turbulent, O son of Kunti, that they can forcibly carry away the mind even of a person endowed with discrimination who practices self-control. 

How robust and fearless would a culture have to be to highlight the weakness of even its greatest saints? All this is done to assure seekers to pursue the truth fearlessly and not give up when they stumble because even the best face challenges. 

Imagine if organizations adopted a similar approach. The big ones have everything they need to succeed. Google has a solid chance of dominating the AI battle in the future. They own the browser, the mobile OS, office apps, and search spaces. They have enough money to build and acquire what they need. All they need is a healthy dose of honesty and truth. This blustering bravado and panic must be replaced with simple facts and achievable deadlines. The shareholders who believe the company will stay back, and the treasure hunters will move on to terrorize someone else. 

The story and the quotes are taken from my guru Om Swami’s Devi Bhagwatam course. When you start listening to this course, you get immediately transported to ancient India. It’s an amazing and immersive experience.