Susan Wojcicki, a technology pioneer and Palo Alto native who played a key role in founding Google before becoming CEO of YouTube, has died, her husband Dennis Troper said Friday evening.
She was 56.
The daughter of Esther Wojcicki, a journalism teacher at Palo Alto High School, and Stanley Wojcicki, a physics professor at Stanford University, she grew up on the Stanford University campus and attended Gunn High School.
She joined Google in the company’s early days, renting her Menlo Park garage to co-founders Larry Page and Sergei Brin in 1998 and joining the company the following year as its first marketing manager.
Wojcicki was also instrumental in the company’s purchase of YouTube in 2006. When she became the company’s CEO in 2014, Page praised her for her “healthy disregard for the impossible.” She held the position until 2023.
Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google and Alphabet, wrote in a statement that Wojcicki “is as central to Google’s story as anyone, and it’s hard to imagine the world without her.”
“She was an incredible person, leader and friend who had a tremendous impact on the world, and I am one of countless Googlers who now know her better,” Pinchai wrote on X. “We will miss her greatly. Our thoughts are with her family. Rest in peace, Susan.”
Troper shared the news of Wojcicki’s death on social media Friday night, saying she had been suffering from cancer for two years.
“My beloved wife of 26 years and mother of our five children passed away today after battling non-small cell lung cancer for two years,” Troper wrote. “Susan was not only my best friend and life partner, but she was a brilliant mind, a loving mother and a dear friend to many. Her impact on our family and the world was immeasurable. We are heartbroken but grateful for the time we had with her. Please keep our family in mind during this difficult time.”
This story will be updated.
